Search publications of the members of the Royal Belgian institute of natural Sciences
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Changes in bottom shear stress, due to aggregate extraction in the area of the Hinder Banks (Belgian Continental Shelf)
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On best-practice for long-term observations of total suspended particulate matter
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Anatomy, life-history and phylogeny of an exceptionally preserved hadrosaur from the Judith River Formation of Montana (USA)
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Effect of aggregate extraction on MSFD descriptor 7 (hydrographic condition) in the Hinder Banks area (Belgian Continental Shelf)
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Changes in bottom shear stress, due to aggregate extraction in the area of the Hinder Banks (Belgian Continental Shelf)
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Best-practice for long-term observations of total suspended particulate matter in coastal marine environments
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Remains of Atsinganosaurus from the Late Cretaceous Site of Velaux-La Bastide Neuve (Southern France)
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INDI67 Annual Network Report
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MOMO activiteitsrapport (1 juli – 31 december 2015)
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Spatial and seasonal variation of biomineral suspended particulate matter properties in high-turbid nearshore and low-turbid offshore zones
- Suspended particulate matter (SPM) is abundant and essential in marine and coastal waters, and comprises a wide variety of biomineral particles, which are practically grouped into organic biomass and inorganic sediments. Such biomass and sediments interact with each other and build large biomineral aggregates via flocculation, therefore controlling the fate and transport of SPM in marine and coastal waters. Despite its importance, flocculation mediated by biomass-sediment interactions is not fully understood. Thus, the aim of this research was to explain biologically mediated flocculation and SPM dynamics in different locations and seasons in marine and coastal waters. Field measurement campaigns followed by physical and biochemical analyses had been carried out from 2004 to 2011 in the Belgian coastal area to investigate bio-mediated flocculation and SPM dynamics. Although SPM had the same mineralogical composition, it encountered different fates in the turbidity maximum zone (TMZ) and in the offshore zone (OSZ), regarding bio-mediated flocculation. SPM in the TMZ built sediment-enriched, dense, and settleable biomineral aggregates, whereas SPM in the OSZ composed biomass-enriched, less dense, and less settleable marine snow. Biological proliferation, such as an algal bloom, was also found to facilitate SPM in building biomass-enriched marine snow, even in the TMZ. In short, bio-mediated flocculation and SPM dynamics varied spatially and seasonally, owing to biomass-sediment interactions and bio-mediated flocculation.
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On best practice for in situ high-frequency long-term observations of suspended particulate matter concentration using optical and acoustic systems
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Quantitative clay mineralogy as provenance indicator for the recent muds located in the southern North Sea
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MOMO activiteitsrapport (1 juli – 31 december 2016)
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Annual plan 2017, CEBioS programme
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Annual report 2016, CEBioS programme
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Vietnam, a champion for insect biodiversity: A win-win commitment.
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Die Entwicklung der Tsunamiforschung nach der Katastrophe vom 26.12.2004
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Dominance-diversity relationships in ant communities differ with invasion
- The relationship between levels of dominance and species richness is highly contentious, especially in ant communities. The dominance-impoverishment rule states that high levels of dominance only occur in species-poor communities, but there appear to be many cases of high levels of dominance in highly diverse communities. The extent to which dominant species limit local richness through competitive exclusion remains unclear, but such exclusion appears more apparent for non-native rather than native dominant species. Here we perform the first global analysis of the relationship between behavioral dominance and species richness. We used data from 1,293 local assemblages of ground-dwelling ants distributed across five continents to document the generality of the dominance-impoverishment rule, and to identify the biotic and abiotic conditions under which it does and does not apply. We found that the behavioral dominance-diversity relationship varies greatly, and depends on whether dominant species are native or non-native, whether dominance is considered as occurrence or relative abundance, and on variation in mean annual temperature. There were declines in diversity with increasing dominance in invaded communities, but diversity increased with increasing dominance in native communities. These patterns occur along the global temperature gradient. However, positive and negative relationships are strongest in the hottest sites. We also found that climate regulates the degree of behavioral dominance, but differently from how it shapes species richness. Our findings imply that, despite strong competitive interactions among ants, competitive exclusion is not a major driver of local richness in native ant communities. Although the dominance-impoverishment rule applies to invaded communities, we propose an alternative dominance-diversification rule for native communities.
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Ants impact the composition of the aquatic macroinvertebrate communities of a myrmecophytic tank bromeliad
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Ant–plant relationships in the canopy of an Amazonian rainforest: the presence of an ant mosaic
- Using different techniques to access the canopy of an Amazonian rainforest, we inspected 157 tree crowns for arboreal ants. Diversity statistics showed that our study sample was not representative of the tree and ant populations due to their high diversity in Amazonian rainforests, but permitted us to note that a representative part of territorially dominant arboreal ant species (TDAAs) was inventoried. Mapping of TDAA territories and use of a null model showed the presence of an ant mosaic in the upper canopy, but this was not the case in the sub-canopy. Among the TDAAs, carton-nesting Azteca dominated (52.98% of the trees) whereas ant-garden ants (Camponotus femoratus and Crematogaster levior), common in pioneer formations, were secondarily abundant (21.64% of the trees), and the remaining 25.37% of trees sheltered one of 11 other TDAAs. The distribution of the trees forming the upper canopy influences the structure of the ant mosaic, which is related to the attractiveness of some tree taxa for certain arboreal ant species and represents a case of diffuse coevolution.
