Species-specific effects of moonlight on insectivorous bat activity in central Chile

Abstract Moonlight intensity influences the activity patterns of bats. Some bat species reduce their activity levels during brighter nights, a phenomenon known as “lunar phobia.” While lunar phobia of bats has been extensively studied in tropical regions, the same is not the case of bats in temperate regions. By using acoustic detectors, we examined differences in the activity of insectivorous bats on nights with different moonlight intensity in an agricultural landscape of central Chile. We also examined the hourly activity patterns throughout the night and how these varied between full and new moon nights. All bat species modified their activity based on the moonlight intensity; however, their effects were species-specific. The activity of Lasiurus varius, L. villosissimus, Myotis chiloensis, and Histiotus montanus was lower during bright nights, while Tadarida brasiliensis was the only species whose activity was higher during bright nights. Hourly activity throughout the night differed between full moon nights and new moon nights in most bat species. During full moon, bats concentrated their activities in the early hours of the nights; a more homogeneous activity pattern was exhibited during new moon night. Our study demonstrates that moonlight affects the activity of bats in Chile, a factor that should be considered when studying bats.

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Moonlight Avoidance Behavior in Leach's Storm-Petrels as a Defense against Slaty-Backed Gulls

The Auk ◽

10.1093/auk/103.1.14 ◽

1986 ◽

Vol 103 (1) ◽

pp. 14-22 ◽

Cited By ~ 71

Author(s):

Yutaka Watanuki

Keyword(s):

Predator Avoidance ◽

Full Moon ◽

Activity Patterns ◽

Predation Rate ◽

Activity Levels ◽

Nocturnal Activity ◽

Oceanodroma Leucorhoa ◽

Risk Of Predation ◽

Reduced Activity ◽

Moonlight Avoidance

Abstract Diurnal activity patterns of Leach's Storm-Petrels (Oceanodroma leucorhoa) and Slaty-backed Gulls (Larus schistisagus) were investigated. The petrels reduced activity in moonlight in May and June when the predation rate by gulls was relatively high. Petrel activity levels were inversely correlated with light intensities and the corresponding risk of predation by the gull. This suggests that nocturnal activity and moonlight avoidance by the petrel in its colony are an effective defense against diurnal predators. Activity synchronization of the petrel was most marked during the full moon, further supporting the predator-avoidance hypothesis.

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Abundance of early life stages of the surf silverside Notocheirus hubbsi (Teleostei, Atheriniformes) in the coastal nearshore of central Chile

Revista de biología marina y oceanografía ◽

10.22370/rbmo.2021.56.1.2800 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 56 (1) ◽

pp. 74

Author(s):

Francisca Zavala-Muñoz ◽

Mauricio F. Landaeta ◽

Valentina Bernal-Durán ◽

Claudia A. Bustos ◽

Bryan S. Dyer

Keyword(s):

Full Moon ◽

Light Trap ◽

Lunar Cycle ◽

Early Life Stages ◽

Entire Study Period ◽

Austral Spring ◽

Entire Study ◽

Central Chile ◽

New Moon ◽

Set Up

The abundance of early stages of the surf silverside Notocheirus hubbsi in nearshore waters of central Chile, collected in samplings set up to assess the lunar cycle during austral spring and summer is reported. A total of 19 specimens were collected with light traps, 16 larvae (7.89-16.20 mm SL) in austral spring and 3 juveniles (30.70-34.60 mm SL) in summer. Capture per unit effort (CPUE) varied from 0.33 to 2.00 ind. light trap-1 night-1 during the entire study period (September 2015-February 2016, and September 2016-February 2017). N. hubbsi catches recorded maximum abundance during the new moon and no catches during full moon.

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Host circadian rhythms are disrupted during malaria infection in parasite genotype-specific manners

10.1101/670240 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Kimberley F. Prior ◽

Aidan J. O’Donnell ◽

Samuel S. C. Rund ◽

Nicholas J. Savill ◽

Daan R. van der Veen ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Locomotor Activity ◽

Body Temperature ◽

Circadian Rhythms ◽

Activity Patterns ◽

Cancer Type ◽

Parasite Genotype ◽

Specific Effects ◽

Health And Disease ◽

Species Specific ◽

Diabetes And Obesity

AbstractInfection can dramatically alter behavioural and physiological traits as hosts become sick and subsequently return to health. Such “sickness behaviours” include disrupted circadian rhythms in both locomotor activity and body temperature. Host sickness behaviours vary in pathogen species-specific manners but the influence of pathogen intraspecific variation is rarely studied. We examine how infection with the murine malaria parasite, Plasmodium chabaudi, shapes sickness in terms of parasite genotype-specific effects on host circadian rhythms. We reveal that circadian rhythms in host locomotor activity patterns and body temperature become differentially disrupted and in parasite genotype-specific manners. Locomotor activity and body temperature in combination provide more sensitive measures of health than commonly used virulence metrics for malaria (e.g. anaemia). Moreover, patterns of host disruption cannot be explained simply by variation in replication rate across parasite genotypes or the severity of anaemia each parasite genotype causes. It is well known that disruption to circadian rhythms is associated with non-infectious diseases, including cancer, type 2 diabetes, and obesity. Our results reveal that disruption of host circadian rhythms is a genetically variable virulence trait of pathogens with implications for host health and disease tolerance.

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How high is high? Using percentile thresholds to identify peak bat activity

Canadian Journal of Zoology ◽

10.1139/cjz-2014-0230 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 93 (4) ◽

pp. 307-313 ◽

Cited By ~ 8

Author(s):

Amanda M. Adams ◽

Liam P. McGuire ◽

Lauren A. Hooton ◽

M. Brock Fenton

Keyword(s):

Specific Activity ◽

Activity Patterns ◽

Acoustic Monitoring ◽

Activity Levels ◽

Peak Activity ◽

Passive Acoustic Monitoring ◽

Data Set ◽

Bat Activity ◽

Species Specific ◽

Passive Acoustic

Passive acoustic monitoring is a common tool used for monitoring bat activity levels. Identifying periods and locations of peak levels provides insight into bat ecology and has important management implications. One limitation of passive acoustic monitoring is the relative nature of the data, often relying on subjective interpretation of descriptive terminology such as “higher” or “lower”. We propose the use of percentile thresholds (PTs) for objectively identifying peak activity. By compiling a reference data set, it is possible to define percentiles of the observed activity levels and these percentiles can provide objective thresholds for comparing activity levels. We used acoustic recordings from sites in Canada and calculated PTs based on the distribution of the number of calls per hour across all nights and sites for three species of bat. Given species ecologies (e.g., hibernating, migrating), we were able to use PTs to objectively identify peak activity levels on a species-specific basis. Percentile thresholds are also a replicable method of describing within-night activity by evaluating species-specific activity patterns and important times of night. Our analyses and examples represent a proof of concept. The next step is to move towards a standardized distribution to generate PTs. Creating a public repository of acoustic data sets to evaluate activity of a species in the context of its entire range would allow us to standardize terms such as “high” activity in an objective manner.

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Lunar Cycle Influences Reproductive Performance of Crossbred Brahman Cows Under Tropical Conditions

Journal of Biological Rhythms ◽

10.1177/0748730420983638 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 074873042098363

Author(s):

Alejandro A. Aguirre ◽

Roberto A. Palomares ◽

Aitor D. De Ondiz ◽

Eleazar R. Soto ◽

Mariana S. Perea ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Reproductive Performance ◽

Full Moon ◽

Lunar Cycle ◽

The Moon ◽

Crossbred Cows ◽

Lunar Phases ◽

Tropical Conditions ◽

Service Conception ◽

New Moon ◽

Postpartum Estrus

Evidence has accumulated over the years indicating that the moon influences some aspects of the reproductive activity in animals and humans. However, little is known about the influence of the lunar cycle on the reproductive performance of cows under tropical conditions, where the environment strongly affects reproduction. This retrospective study was conducted with the aim of assessing the influence of the lunar cycle on some reproductive traits of tropical crossbred cows managed in a pasture-based system. Data from 5869 reproductive records from two commercial farms localized in the Maracaibo Lake Basin of Zulia State, Venezuela, were analyzed. Variables studied were first service conception rate, calving frequency, first postpartum estrous frequency, and pregnancy frequency. In addition to the lunar cycle, the effects of farm, season, and predominant breed were also considered. Data were analyzed using logistic regression and general linear model from SAS. First service conception was affected by lunar phases and predominant breed, but not by farm or season. For frequencies of calving, first postpartum estrus, and pregnancy, there was no main effect of farm, season, and predominant breed, whereas the effect of lunar phases was highly significant. First service conception was significantly greater in waning than in crescent phase of the lunar cycle. Frequencies of calving, first estrus, and pregnancy were highly correlated and showed greater figures around full moon and new moon. In conclusion, lunar cycle influenced first service conception, attaining greater values in the waning phase of the moon cycle. Frequencies of calving, first postpartum estrus, and pregnancy in crossbred cows showed a clear bimodal rhythm, whose greatest values coincided with new moon and full moon.

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Density-dependent and species-specific effects on self-organization modulate the resistance of mussel bed ecosystems to hydrodynamic stress

The American Naturalist ◽

10.1086/713738 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Gerardo I. Zardi ◽

Katy Rebecca Nicastro ◽

Christopher D. McQuaid ◽

Monique de Jager ◽

Johan van de Koppel ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Self Organization ◽

Mussel Bed ◽

Hydrodynamic Stress ◽

Density Dependent ◽

Specific Effects ◽

Species Specific

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Novel approach to modeling high-frequency activity data to assess therapeutic effects of analgesics in chronic pain conditions

Scientific Reports ◽

10.1038/s41598-021-87304-w ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 11 (1) ◽

Author(s):

Zekun Xu ◽

Eric Laber ◽

Ana-Maria Staicu ◽

B. Duncan X. Lascelles

Keyword(s):

High Frequency ◽

Activity Patterns ◽

Treatment Strategies ◽

Therapeutic Effects ◽

Activity Levels ◽

Activity Data ◽

Novel Approach ◽

High Frequency Activity ◽

Using Data ◽

Chronic Pain Conditions

AbstractOsteoarthritis (OA) is a chronic condition often associated with pain, affecting approximately fourteen percent of the population, and increasing in prevalence. A globally aging population have made treating OA-associated pain as well as maintaining mobility and activity a public health priority. OA affects all mammals, and the use of spontaneous animal models is one promising approach for improving translational pain research and the development of effective treatment strategies. Accelerometers are a common tool for collecting high-frequency activity data on animals to study the effects of treatment on pain related activity patterns. There has recently been increasing interest in their use to understand treatment effects in human pain conditions. However, activity patterns vary widely across subjects; furthermore, the effects of treatment may manifest in higher or lower activity counts or in subtler ways like changes in the frequency of certain types of activities. We use a zero inflated Poisson hidden semi-Markov model to characterize activity patterns and subsequently derive estimators of the treatment effect in terms of changes in activity levels or frequency of activity type. We demonstrate the application of our model, and its advance over traditional analysis methods, using data from a naturally occurring feline OA-associated pain model.

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Variation in vegetation cover and seedling performance of tree species in a forest-savanna ecotone

Journal of Tropical Ecology ◽

10.1017/s0266467418000469 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 35 (2) ◽

pp. 74-82 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Hamza Issifu ◽

George K. D. Ametsitsi ◽

Lana J. de Vries ◽

Gloria Djaney Djagbletey ◽

Stephen Adu-Bredu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Vegetation Cover ◽

Seedling Recruitment ◽

Seedling Survival ◽

Tree Cover ◽

First Year ◽

Transplant Experiment ◽

Tree Seedling ◽

Savanna Woodland ◽

Specific Effects ◽

Species Specific

AbstractDifferential tree seedling recruitment across forest-savanna ecotones is poorly understood, but hypothesized to be influenced by vegetation cover and associated factors. In a 3-y-long field transplant experiment in the forest-savanna ecotone of Ghana, we assessed performance and root allocation of 864 seedlings for two forest (Khaya ivorensis and Terminalia superba) and two savanna (Khaya senegalensis and Terminalia macroptera) species in savanna woodland, closed-woodland and forest. Herbaceous vegetation biomass was significantly higher in savanna woodland (1.0 ± 0.4 kg m−2 vs 0.2 ± 0.1 kg m−2 in forest) and hence expected fire intensities, while some soil properties were improved in forest. Regardless, seedling survival declined significantly in the first-year dry-season for all species with huge declines for the forest species (50% vs 6% for Khaya and 16% vs 2% for Terminalia) by year 2. After 3 y, only savanna species survived in savanna woodland. However, best performance for savanna Khaya was in forest, but in savanna woodland for savanna Terminalia which also had the highest biomass fraction (0.8 ± 0.1 g g−1 vs 0.6 ± 0.1 g g−1 and 0.4 ± 0.1 g g−1) and starch concentration (27% ± 10% vs 15% ± 7% and 10% ± 4%) in roots relative to savanna and forest Khaya respectively. Our results demonstrate that tree cover variation has species-specific effects on tree seedling recruitment which is related to root storage functions.

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