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New calcareous nannofossil taxa from the Ypresian (Early Eocene) of the North Sea Basin and the Turan Platform in West Kazakhstan.
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Belgocaranx luypaertsi gen. and sp. nov., a new skeleton-based Carangid Fish from the Boom Clay (Rupelian, Early Oligocene) at Kallo (N. Belgium).
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The boundary between the Middle Eocene Brussel Sand and the Lede Sand Formations in the Zaventem-Nederokkerzeel area (Northeast of Brussels, Belgium).
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Oligocene benthic foraminiferal zonation for the southern North Sea Basin.
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The Cretaceous-Palaeogene (K/P) boundary in the Aïn Settara section (Kalaat Senan, Central Tunisia): lithological, micropalaeontological and geochemical evidence.
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La stature des Néolithiques mosans
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Site Fidelity of Formica rufa: Micro-Scaled and Persistent Despite Disturbance (Hymenoptera: Formicidae)
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Long-term site fidelity or Ortstreue is an individual foraging strategy typical of ants exploiting stable and predictable food sources in space and time. Red wood ant workers (Formica s. str.) are central-place foragers feeding on honeydew secreted by stable aphid populations. In this field study, temporal site fidelity of Formica rufa honeydew tenders was investigated on a micro-scaled level for a period of time. Additionally, the effect of exchanging honeydew workers between two trees on site fidelity was examined. Site fidelity of the honeydew tenders was very high and they returned repeatedly to particular micro-sites (branches, set of leaves) on a tree. The transfer to a new feeding site apparently did not influence site fidelity as honeydew tenders mainly return to their initial tree. Small-scale site fidelity decreased with time and was not so rigid as larger-scale fidelity. We discuss how site fidelity on one hand and flexibility in foraging and recruiting on the other hand promote foraging efficiency of the colony.
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Hydrological regime and salinity alter the bioavailability of Cu and Zn in wetlands
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In the context of the European Water Framework Directive, controlled flooding of lowlands is considered as a potential water management strategy to minimise the risk of flooding of inhabited areas. However, due to historical pollution and overbank sedimentation, metal levels are elevated in most wetlands, which can cause adverse effects on the ecosystem's dynamics. Additionally, salinity affects the bioavailability of metals present or imported into these systems. The effect of different flooding regimes and salinity exposure scenarios (fresh- and brackish water conditions) on Cu and Zn accumulation in the oligochaete Tubifex tubifex (Muller, 1774) was examined. Metal mobility was closely linked to redox potential, which is directly related to the prevalent hydrological regime. Flooded, and thus more reduced, conditions minimized the availability of metals, while oxidation of the substrates during a drier period was associated with a rapid increase of metal availability and accumulation in the oligochaetes. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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Experimental exposure to cadmium affects metallothionein-like protein levels but not survival and growth in wolf spiders from polluted and reference populations
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Both local adaptation and acclimation in tolerance mechanisms may allow populations to persist under metal pollution. However, both mechanisms are presumed to incur (energetic) costs and to trade-off with other life-history traits. To test this hypothesis, we exposed Pardosa saltans (Lycosidae) spiderlings originating from metal-polluted and unpolluted sites to a controlled cadmium (Cd) treatment, and compared contents of metal-binding metallothionein-like proteins (MTLPs), internal metal concentrations, and individual survival and growth rates with a reference treatment. While increased MTLP concentrations in offspring originating from both polluted and unpolluted populations upon exposure indicates a plastic tolerance mechanism, survival and growth rates remain largely unaffected, independent of the population of origin. However, MTLP and Cd concentrations were not significantly correlated. We suggest that MTLP production may be an important mechanism enabling P. saltans populations to persist in ecosystems polluted with heavy metals above a certain level. (C) 2010 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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Differentiation between two salt marsh beetle ecotypes: Evidence for ongoing speciation
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The plausibility of trait divergence under divergent natural selection in the presence of gene flow in natural populations is a contentious issue in evolutionary research. Its importance lies in the fact that this process is thought to be one of the key triggers in ecological speciation in which a species splits into ecologically distinct forms when separate niches are occupied. in this study we demonstrate strong genetic divergence at the IDH1 locus between pond- and canal-inhabiting individuals of the salt marsh beetle Pogonus chalceus from the Guerande salt fields. Moreover, wing size, a trait that has a heritable basis in this species, was significantly larger in the pond populations, which is in concordance with the unstable nature of this habitat. The relationship between IDH1 allele frequencies and wing size variation was consistent with patterns seen across western European populations. By means of neutral allozymes and microsatellites we detected a small but significant degree of sexual isolation between ecotypes. We conclude that speciation is ongoing and that divergence reflects a balance between selection and gene flow.
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