scholarly journals Pattern and pace of morphological change due to variable human impact: the case of Japanese macaques

Primates ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Madeleine Geiger
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Human Impact ◽  
Morphological Variation ◽  
Japanese Macaques ◽  
Linear Measurements ◽  
Skull Shape ◽  
Rates Of Change ◽  
Animal Populations ◽  
Captive Populations ◽  
In Captivity

AbstractHuman impact influences morphological variation in animals, as documented in many captive and domestic animal populations. However, there are different levels of human impact, and their influence on the pattern and rate of morphological variation remains unclear. This study contributes to the ongoing debate via the examination of cranial and mandibular shape and size variation and pace of change in Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata). This species is ideal for tackling such questions because different wild, wild-provisioned, and captive populations have been monitored and collected over seven decades. Linear measurements were taken on 70 skulls from five populations, grouped into three ‘human impact groups’ (wild, wild-provisioned, and captive). This made it possible to investigate the pattern and pace of skull form changes among the human impact groups as well as over time within the populations. It was found that the overall skull shape tends to differ among the human impact groups, with captive macaques having relatively longer rostra than wild ones. Whether these differences are a result of geographic variation or variable human impact, related to nutritional supply and mechanical properties of the diet, is unclear. However, this pattern of directed changes did not seem to hold when the single captive populations were examined in detail. Although environmental conditions have probably been similar for the two examined captive populations (same captive locality), skull shape changes over the first generations in captivity were mostly different. This varying pattern, together with a consistent decrease in body size in the captive populations over generations, points to genetic drift playing a role in shaping skull shape and body size in captivity. In the captive groups investigated here, the rates of change were found to be high compared to literature records from settings featuring different degrees of human impact in different species, although they still lie in the range of field studies in a natural context. This adds to the view that human impact might not necessarily lead to particularly fast rates of change.

scholarly journals A macromutation eliminates colour patterning in captive butterflies

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Joseph J. Hanly ◽  
Luca Livraghi ◽  
Christa Heryanto ◽  
W. Owen McMillan ◽  
Chris D. Jiggins ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Artificial Selection ◽  
Genetic Basis ◽  
Population Demographics ◽  
Autozygosity Mapping ◽  
Animal Populations ◽  
Captive Populations ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
In The Wild ◽  
Insect Populations ◽  
Mixed Origin

Captive populations often harbor variation that is not present in the wild due to artificial selection. Recent efforts to map this variation have provided insights into the genetic and molecular basis of variation. Heliconius butterflies display a large array of pattern variants in the wild and the genetic basis of these patterns has been well-described. Here we sought to identify the genetic basis of an unusual pattern variant that is instead found in captivity, the ivory mutant, in which all scales on both the wings and body become white or yellow. Using a combination of autozygosity mapping and coverage analysis from 37 captive individuals, we identify a 78kb deletion at the cortex wing patterning locus as the ivory mutation. This deletion is undetected among 458 wild Heliconius genomes samples, and its dosage explains both homozygous and heterozygous ivory phenotypes found in captivity. The deletion spans a large 5' region of the cortex gene that includes a facultative 5' UTR exon detected in larval wing disk transcriptomes. CRISPR mutagenesis of this exon replicates the wing phenotypes from coding knock-outs of cortex, consistent with a functional role of ivory-deleted elements in establishing scale color fate. Population demographics reveal that the stock giving rise to the ivory mutant has a mixed origin from across the wild range of H. melpomene, and supports a scenario where the ivory mutation occurred after the introduction of cortex haplotypes from Ecuador. Homozygotes for the ivory deletion are inviable, joining 40 other examples of allelic variants that provide heterozygous advantage in animal populations under artificial selection by fanciers and breeders. Finally, our results highlight the promise of autozygosity and association mapping for identifying the genetic basis of aberrant mutations in captive insect populations.

scholarly journals Genetic architecture and heritability of early-life telomere length in a wild passerine

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Pepke ◽  
Thomas Kvalnes ◽  
Sarah Lundregan ◽  
Winnie Boner ◽  
Pat Monaghan ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Telomere Length ◽  
Early Life ◽  
Genetic Basis ◽  
Skeletal Development ◽  
Cellular Growth ◽  
Phenotypic Correlation ◽  
Animal Populations ◽  
Genome Wide ◽  
Genomic Regions

Early-life telomere length (TL) is associated with fitness in a range of organisms. Little is known about the genetic basis of variation in TL in wild animal populations, but to understand the evolutionary and ecological significance of TL it is important to quantify the relative importance of genetic and environmental variation in TL. In this study, we measured TL in 2746 house sparrow nestlings sampled across 20 years and used an animal model to show that there is a small heritable component of early-life TL (h2=0.04), but with a strong component of maternal inheritance. Variation in TL among individuals was mainly driven by environmental (year) variance, but also brood and parental effects. We did not find evidence for a negative genetic correlation underlying the observed negative phenotypic correlation between TL and structural body size. Thus, TL may evolve independently of body size and the negative phenotypic correlation is likely to be caused by non-genetic environmental effects. We further used genome‐wide association analysis to identify genomic regions associated with TL variation. We identified several putative genes underlying TL variation; these have been inferred to be involved in oxidative stress, cellular growth, skeletal development, cell differentiation and tumorigenesis in other species. Together, our results show that TL is a lowly heritable, polygenic trait which is strongly affected by environmental conditions in a free-living bird.

Calibration of Test Diameter and Area As Proxies For Body Size in the Planktonic Foraminifer Globoconella Puncticulata

2018 ◽  
Vol 48 (3) ◽  
pp. 241-245 ◽  
Author(s):  
Anieke Brombacher ◽  
Leanne E. Elder ◽  
Pincelli M. Hull ◽  
Paul A. Wilson ◽  
Thomas H. G. Ezard
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Morphological Change ◽  
Statistical Power ◽  
Three Dimensional ◽  
Body Volume ◽  
Test Diameter ◽  
Linear Measurements ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Test Volume ◽  
Computed Tomography Scanning

Abstract Body size is one of the most commonly measured traits in ecology and evolution because it covaries with environmental (e.g., temperature, latitude, degree of population isolation) and life-history (e.g., metabolic rate, generation time) traits. However, the driving mechanisms of body size variation in the distant geological past are poorly known and complicated by partial specimen recovery, limited population-level sampling, and the use of linear measurements as proxies for three-dimensional volumetric-size data. How much information are we missing by using approximate metrics of body size? Here we examine this question in an evolving lineage of planktonic foraminifera. We measure test diameter and surface area of over 500 individuals of the species Globoconella puncticulata using two-dimensional images. These results are compared with measurements of test volume of the same individuals as measured by a recently developed high-throughput method for analysing three-dimensional morphometrics as well as high-resolution three-dimensional computed tomography scanning. Our results show that even in a lineage showing substantial morphological change, a cross-sectional test area can provide a consistent proxy for body volume. Approximating body volume with one-dimensional (linear) size measurements is more problematic as it systematically over- and underestimates the smallest and largest tests, respectively. In our study, shape (here measured as shell-aspect ratio) only explained marginally more variation when included in the regressions. The use of 3D light microscopy introduces a small degree of scatter in the data, but the number of individuals necessary to detect trends in body size with sufficient statistical power is comparable to the sample size required for other traits. These results imply that even in an evolving lineage undergoing substantial morphological change, cross-sectional area can provide a consistent proxy for body size.

scholarly journals Morphometric Correlates of Age and Breeding Status in American Coots

The Auk ◽  
1987 ◽  
Vol 104 (4) ◽  
pp. 640-646 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ray T. Alisauskas
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Multivariate Techniques ◽  
Same Sex ◽  
Linear Measurements ◽  
Morphometric Variation ◽  
Size And Shape ◽  
Multivariate Dispersion ◽  
Age Related ◽  
The Social ◽  
Males And Females

Abstract I studied morphometric variation in 13 linear measurements from 228 American Coots (Fulica americana) collected in southern Manitoba. Univariate and multivariate techniques revealed differences in size and shape among adult coots that were 1, 2, and =2 yr old. In addition to the obvious differences in size between males and females, the morphometry of older birds differed from that of younger birds in two ways. First, older coots were of larger body size than younger coots of the same sex. Second, older coots had proportionately larger feet and claws relative to the size of their tarsi, and proportionately wider bills and heads relative to other head measurements, than did younger birds. Multivariate dispersion matrices within age/sex cohorts were less variable for older coots. In an analysis of 1-yr-old males, breeders did not differ from nonbreeders in overall body size, but breeders had relatively longer claws and wings than nonbreeders. Age-related differences in morphology may have relevance to the social structure of nesting coots, which involves highly aggressive territorial behavior. Part of the age-related variation in nesting phenology that has been documented elsewhere for coots may be a consequence of covariation in body size and shape.

scholarly journals Phenotypic Variation in Skull Size and Shape Between Newfoundland and Mainland Populations of North American Black Bears, Ursus americanus

2003 ◽  
Vol 117 (2) ◽  
pp. 236 ◽  
Author(s):  
John A. Virgl ◽  
Shane P. Mahoney ◽  
Kim Mawhinney
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Sexual Dimorphism ◽  
Ursus Americanus ◽  
Population Variation ◽  
Black Bears ◽  
Selection Pressures ◽  
Skull Shape ◽  
Skull Size ◽  
Environmental Selection ◽  
Gape Size

It is well recognized that differences in environmental selection pressures among populations can generate phenotypic divergence in a suite of morphological characteristics and associated life history traits. Previous analysis of mitochondrial DNA and body size have suggested that Black Bears (Ursus americanus) inhabiting the island of Newfoundland represent a different subspecies or ecotype from mainland populations. Assuming that body size covaries positively with skull size, we predicted that skull size would be greater for bears on the island than the mainland, and the distribution of size-related shape components in multivariate space should show a distinct separation between Newfoundland and mainland populations. Measurements of 1080 specimens from Newfoundland, Alberta, New York, and Quebec did not provide unequivocal support for our prediction that skull size in Newfoundland bears would be larger than bears from the mainland populations. After removing ontogenetic effects of skull size, between-population variation in skull shape was greater in females than males, and the analysis significantly separated Newfoundland bears from mainland populations. Explanations for this pattern are numerous, but currently remain hypothetical. Limited covariation between skull size and body size suggests that genetic traits regulating the size of Black Bear skulls are more heritable (i.e., less influenced by environmental selection pressures) than characteristics affecting body size. We hypothesize that if gape size does not limit prey size in solitary terrestrial carnivores, large degrees of among-population variation in body size should be coupled with little covariation in skull size. In general, sexual dimorphism in skull size and shape was marginal for the phenotypic characters measured in our study. We believe that sexual dimorphism in skull size in Black Bears is primarily driven by intrasexual selection in males for increased gape size display, while similarity in skull shape between sexes is associated with the constraints of a temporally-selective, but similar diet.

scholarly journals Morphological variation in the horse: defining complex traits of body size and shape

2010 ◽  
Vol 41 ◽  
pp. 159-165 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. A. Brooks ◽  
S. Makvandi-Nejad ◽  
E. Chu ◽  
J. J. Allen ◽  
C. Streeter ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Morphological Variation ◽  
Complex Traits ◽  
Size And Shape

scholarly journals Capture from the wild has long-term costs on reproductive success in Asian elephants

2019 ◽  
Vol 286 (1912) ◽  
pp. 20191584 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mirkka Lahdenperä ◽  
John Jackson ◽  
Win Htut ◽  
Virpi Lummaa
Keyword(s):  
Elephas Maximus ◽  
Negative Effects ◽  
Asian Elephants ◽  
Lifetime Fitness ◽  
Life History Data ◽  
Captive Populations ◽  
In Captivity ◽  
Fitness Measures ◽  
Long Term Consequences

Capturing wild animals is common for conservation, economic or research purposes. Understanding how capture itself affects lifetime fitness measures is often difficult because wild and captive populations live in very different environments and there is a need for long-term life-history data. Here, we show how wild capture influences reproduction in 2685 female Asian elephants ( Elephas maximus ) used in the timber industry in Myanmar. Wild-caught females demonstrated a consistent reduction in breeding success relative to captive-born females, with significantly lower lifetime reproduction probabilities, lower breeding probabilities at peak reproductive ages and a later age of first reproduction. Furthermore, these negative effects lasted for over a decade, and there was a significant influence on the next generation: wild-caught females had calves with reduced survival to age 5. Our results suggest that wild capture has long-term consequences for reproduction, which is important not only for elephants, but also for other species in captivity.

scholarly journals Left ventricular global strains by linear measurements in three dimensions: interrelations and relations to age, gender and body size in the HUNT Study

Open Heart ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
pp. e001050 ◽  
Author(s):  
Asbjørn Støylen ◽  
Harald Edvard Mølmen ◽  
Håvard Dalen
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Normal Values ◽  
Left Ventricular ◽  
Three Dimensions ◽  
Health Study ◽  
Relative Deformation ◽  
Linear Measurements ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Strain Components ◽  
And Gender

BackgroundStrain is a relative deformation and has three dimensions, in the left ventricle (LV) usually longitudinal (εL), transmural (εT) and circumferential (εC) strain. All three components can be measured generically by the basic systolic and diastolic dimension measures of LV wall length, wall thickness and diameter. In this observational study we aimed to study the relations of normal generic strains to age, body size and gender, as well as the interrelations between the three strain components.MethodsGeneric strains derived from dimension measures by longitudinal and cross-sectional M-mode in all three dimensions were measured in 1266 individuals without heart disease from the Nord-Trøndelag Health Study.ResultsThe mean εL was −16.3%, εC was −22.7% and εT was 56.5%. Normal values by age and gender are provided. There was a gradient of εC from the endocardial, via the midwall to the external level, lowest at the external. All strains decreased in absolute values by increasing body surface area (BSA) and age, relations were strongest for εL. Gender differences were mainly a function of BSA differences. The three strain components were strongly interrelated through myocardial incompressibility.ConclusionsGlobal systolic strain is the total deformation of the myocardium; the three strain components are the spatial coordinates of this deformation, irrespective of the technology used for measurement. Normal values are method-dependent and not normative across methods. Interrelation of strains indicates a high degree of myocardial incompressibility and that longitudinal strain carries most of the total information.

Geographical ecology of a Neotropical lizard: Ameiva ameiva (Teiidae) in Brazil

1994 ◽  
Vol 72 (11) ◽  
pp. 1986-2008 ◽  
Author(s):  
Laurie J. Vitt ◽  
Guarino R. Colli
Keyword(s):  
Body Size ◽  
Morphological Variation ◽  
Large Body ◽  
Striking Similarity ◽  
Offspring Size ◽  
Female Size ◽  
Geographic Scale ◽  
Early Afternoon ◽  
Study Sites ◽  
Clutch Mass

The large-bodied teiid lizard Ameiva ameiva was studied at eight different sites in four major South American habitats of Brazil: caatinga, cerrado, Amazonian rain forest, and Amazonian savanna. We found striking similarity in ecological attributes of this lizard among very different habitats. Activity is concentrated in late morning and early afternoon; active body temperatures average 37.9 ± 0.09 °C and vary little among sites or throughout the day; the diet consists of a variety of vertebrates and invertebrates but is dominated by grasshoppers, roaches, beetles, spiders, and insect larvae; and niche breadths for prey are similar among study sites but the actual composition of the diets varies. There is minimal morphological variation among sites (mostly size); the most striking morphological variation is between the sexes. Males reach larger body sizes and have relatively larger heads than females. Juveniles have relatively larger heads than would be predicted on the basis of body size alone. Sexual selection may explain the sexual differences in head size of adults, whereas the relatively large heads of juveniles may be associated with food competition with sympatric teiid lizards. Clutch size varies from 1 to 11 eggs, is related to female body size (snout–vent length), and varied among study sites. Similar variation among sites occurs in egg size but not in relative clutch mass. An interesting positive relationship was found between body size and relative clutch mass. In a population from the state of Rondônia egg dry mass was correlated with female size, indicating that individual offspring size is, to some extent, a consequence of female size. The reproductive season is extended for all populations and it appears that predictability of rainfall may regulate the season length. Reasons for the apparent success of A. ameiva in a diversity of habitats on a large geographic scale include its large body size, foraging mode, and preferred microhabitat (ecotones and disturbed areas).

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