Effects of Argentine ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae) on myrmecophilous lycaenid butterfly, Narathura bazalus (Lepidoptera: Lycaenidae), in western Japan

2020 ◽  
Vol 23 (1) ◽  
pp. 69-73
Author(s):  
Nobuhiro Ikenaga ◽  
Yoshifumi Touyama ◽  
Takeshi Kameyama ◽  
Fuminori Ito
Keyword(s):  
Argentine Ants ◽  
Western Japan ◽  
Lycaenid Butterfly

Life cycles of the rhizocephalan Boschmaella japonica Deichmann & Høeg, 1990 (Cirripedia: Chthamalophilidae) and its host barnacle Chthamalus challengeri Hoek, 1883 (Cirripedia: Chthamalidae)

2020 ◽  
Vol 40 (6) ◽  
pp. 825-832 ◽  
Author(s):  
Miku Yabuta ◽  
Jens T Høeg ◽  
Shigeyuki Yamato ◽  
Yoichi Yusa
Keyword(s):  
Life Cycle ◽  
Brood Size ◽  
Life Cycles ◽  
The Body ◽  
Egg Volume ◽  
Size Number ◽  
Rhizocephalan Barnacles ◽  
Western Japan ◽  
Upper Intertidal ◽  
Chthamalus Challengeri

Abstract Although parasitic castration is widespread among rhizocephalan barnacles, Boschmaella japonica Deichmann & Høeg, 1990 does not completely sterilise the host barnacle Chthamalus challengeri Hoek, 1883. As little information is available on the relationships with the host in “barnacle-infesting parasitic barnacles” (family Chthamalophilidae), we studied the life cycles of both B. japonica and C. challengeri and the effects of the parasite on the host reproduction. Specimens of C. challengeri were collected from an upper intertidal shore at Shirahama, Wakayama, western Japan from April 2017 to September 2018 at 1–3 mo intervals. We recorded the body size, number of eggs, egg volume, and the presence of the parasite for each host. Moreover, settlement and growth of C. challengeri were followed in two fixed quadrats. Chthamalus challengeri brooded from February to June. The prevalence of B. japonica was high (often exceeded 10%) from April to July, and was rarely observed from September to next spring. The life cycle of the parasite matched well with that of the host. The parasite reduced the host’s brooding rate and brood size, to the extent that no hosts brooded in 2018.

scholarly journals Archaeointensity Determinations from Western Japan

1986 ◽  
Vol 38 (12) ◽  
pp. 1323-1329 ◽  
Author(s):  
H. SAKAI ◽  
K. HIROOKA
Keyword(s):  
Western Japan

Evolution of Sex Chromosome Heteromorphy in Geographic Populations of the Japanese Tago’s Brown Frog Complex

2021 ◽  
pp. 1-9
Author(s):  
Chiao Kuwana ◽  
Hiroyuki Fujita ◽  
Masataka Tagami ◽  
Takanori Matsuo ◽  
Ikuo Miura
Keyword(s):  
Sex Chromosomes ◽  
Sex Chromosome ◽  
Mitochondrial Gene ◽  
Population Level ◽  
Chromosome 7 ◽  
Geographic Population ◽  
Geographic Populations ◽  
Western Japan ◽  
Brown Frog ◽  
Eastern Japan

The sex chromosomes of most anuran amphibians are characterized by homomorphy in both sexes, and evolution to heteromorphy rarely occurs at the species or geographic population level. Here, we report sex chromosome heteromorphy in geographic populations of the Japanese Tago’s brown frog complex (2n = 26), comprising Rana sakuraii and R. tagoi. The sex chromosomes of R. sakuraii from the populations in western Japan were homomorphic in both sexes, whereas chromosome 7 from the populations in eastern Japan were heteromorphic in males. Chromosome 7 of R. tagoi, which is distributed close to R. sakuraii in eastern Japan, was highly similar in morphology to the Y chromosome of R. sakuraii. Based on this and on mitochondrial gene sequence analysis, we hypothesize that in the R. sakuraii populations from eastern Japan the XY heteromorphic sex chromosome system was established by the introduction of chromosome 7 from R. tagoi via interspecies hybridization. In contrast, chromosome 13 of R. tagoi from the 2 large islands in western Japan, Shikoku and Kyushu, showed a heteromorphic pattern of constitutive heterochromatin distribution in males, while this pattern was homomorphic in females. Our study reveals that sex chromosome heteromorphy evolved independently at the geographic lineage level in this species complex.

scholarly journals Influence of the Number of Queens on Nest Establishment: Native and Invasive Ant Species

Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (3) ◽  
pp. 591
Author(s):  
Irene Castañeda ◽  
Elsa Bonnaud ◽  
Franck Courchamp ◽  
Gloria Luque
Keyword(s):  
Species Differences ◽  
Argentine Ants ◽  
Invasive Ant ◽  
Internal Factors ◽  
Ant Colonies ◽  
Worker Behavior ◽  
Key Factor ◽  
Nest Maintenance ◽  
Set Up ◽  
Tapinoma Nigerrimum

As a critical stage in the life cycle of ant colonies, nest establishment depends on external and internal factors. This study investigates the effect of the number of queens on queen and worker behavior during nest establishment in invasive Argentine ants (Linepitema humile) and native Mediterranean Tapinoma nigerrimum. We set up experimental colonies with the same number of workers but with one or six queens. At different time points, we recorded the positions of queens and workers inside and outside the nest. Our results highlight the influence of the number of queens on the position of queens and workers with between-species differences. Queens of both species entered the nests more quickly when there were six queens. During nest establishment, more workers were inside nests with six queens for both species, with this effect being greater for T. nigerrimum. Once nests were established, fewer workers of both species were engaged in nest maintenance and feeding in nests with six queens; T. nigerrimum had fewer workers engaged in patrolling. These results suggest that the number of queens is a key factor driving queen and worker behavior during and after nest establishment with different species responses.

scholarly journals Effects of the Tibetan High and the North Pacific High on the Occurrence of Hot or Cool Summers in Japan

Atmosphere ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 307
Author(s):  
Makoto Inoue ◽  
Atsushi Ugajin ◽  
Osamu Kiguchi ◽  
Yousuke Yamashita ◽  
Masashi Komine ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
High Pressure ◽  
North Pacific ◽  
Lower Stratosphere ◽  
The Other ◽  
Summer Climate ◽  
The North ◽  
Several Variables ◽  
Western Japan ◽  
Cool Summer ◽  
The North Pacific

In this study, we investigated the effects of the Tibetan High near the tropopause and the North Pacific High in the troposphere on occurrences of hot or cool summers in Japan. We first classified Japan into six regions and identified hot and cool summer years in these regions from a 38-year sample (1980–2017) based on the monthly air temperature. To investigate the features of circulation fields over Asia during hot and cool summers in Japan, we calculated the composite differences (hot summer years minus cool summer years) of several variables such as geopotential height, which indicated significant high-pressure anomalies in the troposphere and lower stratosphere. These results suggest that both the North Pacific and the Tibetan Highs tend to extend to Japan during hot summer years, while cool summers seem to be associated with the weakening of these highs. We found that extension of the Tibetan High to the Japanese mainland can lead to hot summers in Northern, Eastern, and Western Japan. On the other hand, hot summers in the Southwestern Islands may be due to extension of the Tibetan High to the south. Similarly, the latitudinal direction of extension of the North Pacific High is profoundly connected with the summer climate in respective regions.

scholarly journals Utilization of artificial spawning beds by endangered bitterling fish in an agricultural channel in southern Okayama, western Japan.

2017 ◽  
Vol 20 (1) ◽  
pp. 33-41
Author(s):  
Kazuyoshi NAKATA ◽  
Soma KOBAYASHI ◽  
Ippei KAWAMOTO ◽  
Yuta MIYATAKE ◽  
Hiroshi AOE
Keyword(s):  
Western Japan
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