Search publications of the members of the Royal Belgian institute of natural Sciences
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Milieueffectenbeoordeling van het RENTEL offshore windmolenpark ten noordwesten van de Thorntonbank en ten zuidoosten van de Lodewijkbank – exportkabel.
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Minder bruinvissen in de zuidelijke Noordzee
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Rapport des activités et des résultats réalisés en 2014
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Monitoring en Modellering van het cohesieve sedimenttransport en evaluatie van de effecten op het mariene ecosysteem ten gevolge van bagger- en stortoperatie (MOMO). Activiteitsrapport 1 januari 2015 – 30 juni 2015.
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2nd Annual Network Report TILES (BR/121/A2/TILES). Belgian Science Policy, Brain-be framework programme (Belgian Research Action through Interdisciplinary Networks).
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TILES Workshop 2: Discussie resultaten grondstofmodellering met eindgebruikers. Belspo Brain-be project TILES (BR/121/A2/TILES).
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Divergent ontogenies of trophic morphology in two closely related haplochromine cichlids
- Fish develop morphological specializations in their trophic and locomotor systems as a result of varying functional demands in response to environmental pressures at different life stages. These specializations should maximize particular performances in specialists, adapting them to their trophic and habitat niches at each ontogenetic stage. Because differential growth rates of the structural components comprised in the head are likely to be linked to the diet of a fish throughout its development, we investigated the ontogenetic development of two haplochromine cichlid species belonging to different trophic guilds. We employed geometric morphometric techniques to evaluate whether starting from morphologically similar fry they diverge into phenotypes that characterize trophic guilds and locomotor types. Our examination of overall body shape shows that certain specialized morphological features are already present in fry, whereas other traits diverge through ontogeny due to differences in species-specific allometric variation. Allometric shape variation was found to be more relevant for the biter specialist than for the sucker morphotype. Our results confirm that phenotypic changes during ontogeny can be linked to dietary and habitat shifts in these fish. Furthermore, evidence for an integrated development of trophic and locomotor specializations in morphology was observed.
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Phylogeography and evolutionary history of the Crocidura olivieri complex (Mammalia, Soricomorpha): from a forest-based origin to a broad expansion across Africa
- Background: This study aims to reconstruct the evolutionary history of African shrews referred to the Crocidura olivieri complex. We tested the respective role of forest retraction/expansion during the Pleistocene, rivers (allopatric models), ecological gradients (parapatric model) and anthropogenic factors in explaining the distribution and diversification within this species complex. We sequenced three mitochondrial and four nuclear markers from 565 specimens encompassing the known distribution of the complex, i.e. from Morocco to Egypt and south to Mozambique. We used Bayesian phylogenetic inference, genetic structure analyses and divergence time estimates to assess the phylogenetic relationships and evolutionary history of these animals. Results: The C. olivieri complex (currently composed of C. olivieri, C. fulvastra, C. viaria and C. goliath) can be segregated into eight principal geographical clades, most exhibiting parapatric distributions. A decrease in genetic diversity was observed between central and western African clades and a marked signal of population expansion was detected for a broadly distributed clade occurring across central and eastern Africa and portions of Egypt (clade IV). The main cladogenesis events occurred within the complex between 1.37 and 0.48 Ma. Crocidura olivieri sensu stricto appears polyphyletic and C. viaria and C. fulvastra were not found to be monophyletic. Conclusions: Climatic oscillations over the Pleistocene probably played a major role in shaping the genetic diversity within this species complex. Different factors can explain their diversification, including Pleistocene forest refuges, riverine barriers and differentiation along environmental gradients. The earliest postulated members of the complex originated in central/eastern Africa and the first radiations took place in rain forests of the Congo Basin. A dramatic shift in the ecological requirements in early members of the complex, in association with changing environments, took place sometime after 1.13 Ma. Some lineages then colonized a substantial portion of the African continent, including a variety of savannah and forest habitats. The low genetic divergence of certain populations, some in isolated localities, can be explained by their synanthropic habits. This study underlines the need to revise the taxonomy of the C. olivieri complex.
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The phylogeography of the rodent genus Malacomys suggests multiple Afrotropical Pleistocene lowland forest refugia
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Biodiversity, Bushmeat and Monkeypox in the Democratic Republic of the Congo: another viral threat upon larger cities?
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Speciation genomics of Ophthalmotilapia species from Lake Tanganyika
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The reproductive behavior of two sympatric Ophthalmotilapia species (Ectodini) from Lake Tanganyika
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A tale about knowledge and empowerment: Rebuilding biodiversity related capacities in the DR Congo
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Microdiversity inside macrobiodiversity: Zoonotic risk along the Congo river
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Unexpected species richness in the African pike Hepsetus odoe (Bloch, 1794); (Characiformes: Hepsetidae)
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Baseline levels and trophic transfer of persistent organic pollutants, selected pesticides and trace metals in surface water, sediments and biota from the Congo River Basin (DR Congo)
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A Story Of Unexpected species diversity: the case of the African Pike Hepsetus odoe (Bloch, 1794) (Characiformes: Hepsetidae)
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Congo Basin: From Carbon To Fishes –The Cobafish Project
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The Cenozoic Plesiotritoninae (Mollusca: Neogastropoda: Cancellarioidea: Cancellariidae) of the Aquitaine Bassin, southwestern France
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Spa thermal waters
