Article
Biology
Ambre Coste, R. Ewan Fordyce, Carolina Loch
Summary: A new fossil dolphin, Nihohae matakoi gen. et sp. nov., from the Late Oligocene of New Zealand, reveals a diverse dentition with a variety of tooth shapes and orientations, including horizontally procumbent tusk-like teeth. This suggests adaptive advantages for horizontally procumbent teeth in basal dolphins.
PROCEEDINGS OF THE ROYAL SOCIETY B-BIOLOGICAL SCIENCES
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Molly A. Bost, Charles Deaton, Antonio B. Rodriguez, Brent McKee, F. Joel Fodrie, Carson Miller
Summary: Land cover and use around estuaries in North America have changed since 1950 due to development pressures, particularly in small coastal watersheds. This change in land cover affects sediment contribution and estuarine habitats, with implications for wetland resilience to sea-level rise and the stress on subtidal habitats. The study compares sediment accumulation rates in tidal creeks before and after 1950 in North Carolina, showing an overall increase in sediment accumulation rates and the potential infilling of some creeks. These findings provide valuable information for coastal zone managers in balancing development and environmental protection.
Article
Astronomy & Astrophysics
Meghana Pannikkote, Vaidehi S. Paliya, D. J. Saikia
Summary: The latest addition to the jetted active galactic nuclei (AGN) family is the Fanaroff-Riley type 0 (FR0) radio galaxies, which have similar observational characteristics to FR I sources but lack the extended radio structures. By utilizing ongoing multiwavelength wide-field sky surveys, seven gamma-ray-emitting AGN have been identified as FR0 radio sources. The observed broadband properties of these objects are similar to their gamma-ray undetected counterparts, suggesting a common gamma-ray production mechanism and misaligned jets.
ASTROPHYSICAL JOURNAL
(2023)
Article
History & Philosophy Of Science
Francois Papale
Summary: This paper analyzes recent attempts to reject reproduction with lineage formation as a necessary condition for evolution by means of natural selection and argues that a robust formulation of evolution by natural selection without reproduction can be established. It reformulates Lewontin's three principles and states that paradigmatic evolution by natural selection, which can generate adaptations, requires the additional condition of regeneration.
Article
Environmental Sciences
Yuyan Gong, Yiqun Yang, Zhiwen Wang, Guanqiong Ye, Jiangning Zeng, Wenjia Hu
Summary: This study used the GIS-based AHP-OWA method to determine different levels of priority protection for marine protected areas (MPAs) in Zhejiang, China by considering three major anthropogenic impact factors and two main ecological importance factors. The results identified the best locations for MPAs in the northeast, central, and southern marine areas of Zhejiang. The proposed MPA siting method and case study may serve as a technical reference for regional marine spatial planning (MSP) issues in the future.
JOURNAL OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
(2023)
Article
Biology
Mikael Pontarp, Anna Runemark, Magne Friberg, Oystein H. Opedal, Anna S. Persson, Lingzi Wang, Henrik G. Smith
Summary: Agricultural intensification has significant impacts on plant and animal evolutionary responses and interactions, and understanding these effects is crucial for conservation of species and ecosystem services. This review highlights the need for a better understanding of evolutionary change induced by agricultural intensification and its consequences on ecosystem services. It also proposes methods and theories that can improve predictions of these effects.
BIOLOGICAL REVIEWS
(2023)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Emily R. Hager, Olivia S. Harringmeyer, T. Brock Wooldridge, Shunn Theingi, Jacob T. Gable, Sade McFadden, Beverly Neugeboren, Kyle M. Turner, Jeffrey D. Jensen, Hopi E. Hoekstra
Summary: This study characterized the genetic basis of trait variation in different ecotypes of deer mice and identified a chromosomal inversion linked to tail length and coat color. The frequency of the inversion was high in the forest ecotype, decreased across a habitat transition, and was absent in the prairie ecotype. Divergent selection was implicated in maintaining the inversion at observed frequencies despite high levels of gene flow, and the study explored the fitness benefits arising from suppressed recombination within the inversion.
Review
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Rik Verdonck, Delphine Legrand, Staffan Jacob, Herve Philippe
Summary: Ciliates have a unique genetic system with two types of nuclei in each cell. The ecological and evolutionary significance of nuclear dimorphism in ciliates has not been well explained. We propose a novel explanation that suggests ciliate nuclear dimorphism can be considered as a tool for phenotypic plasticity by somatic selection at the level of the ciliate clone.
TRENDS IN MICROBIOLOGY
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Florent Grasso, Eliott Bismuth, Romaric Verney
Summary: This study analyzed a 22-year numerical hindcast of the Seine Estuary in France, revealing the impact of wave and river discharge on sediment fluxes. Human activities causing estuary deepening and narrowing have shifted sediment import and export dynamics within the estuary.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Oceanography
J. R. Cox, J. R. F. W. Leuven, H. J. Pierik, M. van Egmond, M. G. Kleinhans
Summary: Many delta systems worldwide are undergoing urbanization processes, and human activities have had significant impacts on the morphology and ecology of these deltas. In the Rhine-Meuse delta in the Netherlands, port activities and river diversions have led to deepening and shallowing of the estuaries, as well as loss of intertidal areas and floodplains. These changes have resulted in water volume loss and various problems. These issues will worsen in the coming decades, emphasizing the need to reconsider sediment management and spatial planning of port expansion. This study highlights the importance of researching urbanized delta systems and climate change.
CONTINENTAL SHELF RESEARCH
(2022)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Saverio Bartolini-Lucenti, Joan Madurell-Malapeira, Bienvenido Martinez-Navarro, Paul Palmqvist, David Lordkipanidze, Lorenzo Rook
Summary: The paper reports on the discovery of early carnivorous canid fossils at the Dmanisi site, showing highly cooperative pack-hunting features and social care towards group members. This evolved hypercarnivorous canid from East Asia has one of its earliest records in the Caucasus at Dmanisi, dispersing towards Europe and Africa in a parallel route to hominins. The altruistic behavior towards group members by early Pleistocene hominins and hunting dogs is a topic discussed in evolutionary biology for over a century.
SCIENTIFIC REPORTS
(2021)
Article
Biochemistry & Molecular Biology
Joanna F. D. Hagen, Claudia C. Mendes, Shamma R. Booth, Javier Figueras Jimenez, Kentaro M. Tanaka, Franziska A. Franke, Luis Baudouin-Gonzalez, Amber M. Ridgway, Saad Arif, Maria D. S. Nunes, Alistair P. McGregor
Summary: The study found significant differences in the morphology of epandrial posterior lobes and claspers of male individuals of the Drosophila simulans species clade, likely influenced by sexual selection. Through analysis of introgression lines and RNA-seq, new genes involved in the development and evolution of genital structures were identified, shedding light on the key genes regulating these evolutionary processes.
MOLECULAR BIOLOGY AND EVOLUTION
(2021)
Article
Engineering, Civil
Yunping Yang, Jinhai Zheng, Mingjin Zhang, Lingling Zhu, Yude Zhu, Jianjun Wang, Weiyang Zhao
Summary: The study found that large-scale reservoirs and human activities have caused changes in the morphology of sandy reaches along the Yangtze River, including river erosion and siltation, riverbed morphology, and sandbar area. Sand mining activities have destroyed the integrity of central sandbars, leading to increased riverbed erosion and narrower, deeper channels.
JOURNAL OF HYDROLOGY
(2021)
Article
Multidisciplinary Sciences
Ariel F. Kahrl, Rhonda R. Snook, John L. Fitzpatrick
Summary: The fertilization environment plays a significant role in the evolution and diversification of sperm morphology across vertebrate species, but the impact of fertilization mode varies among sperm components and vertebrate clades.
NATURE COMMUNICATIONS
(2022)
Editorial Material
Evolutionary Biology
Michael B. Morrissey, Anne Hubbs, Marco Festa-Bianchet
Summary: The article discusses trends in horn size of bighorn sheep and suggests stable or increasing growth over nearly 3 decades in most hunt areas in western U.S. and Canada. However, there is evidence of declining horn sizes in Alberta due to selective harvest practices. The biases in the data may lead to underestimation of the trends in horn sizes.
EVOLUTIONARY APPLICATIONS
(2021)