Omnivorous diet of the endangered Pygmy Bluetongue Lizard, Tiliqua adelaidensis

2007 ◽  
Vol 28 (4) ◽  
pp. 560-565 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael Bull ◽  
Mark Hutchinson ◽  
Aaron Fenner
Keyword(s):  
Plant Material ◽  
Prey Capture ◽  
South Australia ◽  
High Abundance ◽  
Diet Change ◽  
Omnivorous Diet

Abstract We used scats from 71 individuals to determine the diet of the endangered Pygmy Bluetongue Lizard, Tiliqua adelaidensis, from South Australia. As predicted both from its previously reported behaviour as an ambush forager, and from its relatively small size, this scincid lizard feeds largely on arthropod prey, and the prey in the diet change opportunistically over the spring and summer. As expected, the species is less herbivorous than larger species in the same or related genera. However plant material is included in the diet to a greater extent as the summer progresses. Conservation of this species may rely on maintaining a high abundance of arthropod prey, and a habitat where efficient prey capture is possible, and on retaining appropriate plants in the species' habitat.

The ecology of sympatric scincid lizards (Ctenotus) in arid South Australia

1998 ◽  
Vol 46 (6) ◽  
pp. 617 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. L. Read
Keyword(s):  
Home Range ◽  
Environmental Conditions ◽  
Plant Material ◽  
Reproductive Effort ◽  
Arid Zone ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Early Summer ◽  
Home Ranges ◽  
Local Species ◽  
Olympic Dam

Ctenotus skinks are the most diverse and abundant diurnal reptile genus at Olympic Dam, in the South Australian arid zone. The home range, demography, reproduction and diet of five syntopic Ctenotus species was studied over a 6-year period in chenopod shrubland. Longevity frequently exceeded three years in C. regius, four years in C. schomburgkii and five years in C. leonhardii, with a 7-year-old specimen of C. leonhardii being recorded. Females of most species tended to be larger and lived longer than males. Two eggs were typically laid by each species in early summer. Annual reproductive effort, particularly in C. leonhardii, varied considerably depending upon the prevailing environmental conditions. All local species apparently occupied home ranges, with maximum recapture radii in different species of 40–60 m. Ctenotus appear to be unspecialised insectivores, although plant material and lizards are sometimes eaten by the larger species.

The nest of the Hastings River mouse Pseudomys oralis.

2002 ◽  
Vol 24 (2) ◽  
pp. 225 ◽  
Author(s):  
PD Meek
Keyword(s):  
Small Mammals ◽  
Plant Material ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Nest Chamber

THE most detailed information on the burrows and nests of Australian small mammals are reported by Watts and Aslin (1981). The nests of several species of Pseudomys have been described and vary between species. Three nests of the New Holland mouse Pseudomys novaehollandiae were excavated from sand burrows and described as being partially comprised of Eucalypt leaves (Kemper 1981). In South Australia, silky mice P. apodemoides construct nests of shredded bark within a nest chamber of approximately 15 cm (Watts and Aslin 1981). The desert mouse P. desertor reputedly builds dry grass nests in shallow constructions (Read et al.1999) and the long-tailed mouse P. higginsi and eastern chestnut mouse P. gracilicaudatus, delicate mouse P. delicatulus and Gould?s mouse P. gouldii all construct nests of plant material (Watts and Aslin 1981; Green 1993; Fox 1995) mostly grass. The nests of the smokey mouse P. fumeus are constructed of dried grass and Allocasuarina needles that are shaped in a cup form (10-15cm in diameter) (Woods and Ford 2000).

The Ecology of the Eastern Water Rat Hydromys Chrysogaster at Griffith, N.s.w.: Food and Feeding Habits.

1978 ◽  
Vol 5 (1) ◽  
pp. 59 ◽  
Author(s):  
P Woollard ◽  
WJM Vestjens ◽  
L Maclean
Keyword(s):  
Plant Material ◽  
Feeding Habits ◽  
Starch Content ◽  
South Australia ◽  
Stomach Contents ◽  
Freshwater Mussel ◽  
Time Of Day ◽  
Gut Contents ◽  
South Wales ◽  
Hydromys Chrysogaster

The eastern water rat, Hydromys chrysogaster, lives in inland waters, estuaries, sea beaches and islands from Queensland to South Australia and Tasmania. It is adapted to semiaquatic life and changes in its molar teeth may be an adaptation to diet of crustaceans and molluscs. The present study was of 408 stomach contents and 316 contents of caecum with rectum, collected in New South Wales in 1970-73 from permanent Typha swamp. From elsewhere there were 12 other stomach and 11 gut contents and live rats were observed. At any time of day but particularly in evenings the rats swam along the bank or between logs or reed clumps, foraging and catching fish. Captive rats crushed small mussels and left large mussels to open by exposure. Diet varied with season and included crustaceans, mostly the yabbie, a crayfish (Cherax destructor), spiders, all Araneida with one identified as of the suborder Pisauridae, a fishing spider. Insects were the main food and were eaten in all seasons, and included larvae, nymphs and adults. Only 1% of rats had the freshwater mussel Veksurio ambiguus but the flesh was difficult to identify and empty shells were often found. Fish were eaten all the year, and were found in up to 35% of rats in autumn and winter; fish may be underestimated because flesh is not easily recognised and hard parts are not much eaten. Several species of fish, mostly introduced, were identified, their ages estimated from their scales, and length was calculated to be up to 36 cm. Frogs and macquaria tortoise (Emydura macquarii) were eaten. Birds were eaten all the year and were in up to 10% of stomachs in winter. Personal communications are quoted, from persons having seen H. chrysogaster capture large adult birds including duck and mutton bird (Puffinus tenuirostris). Captive rats were able to open cracked hen's eggs but left intact eggs. Plant material was eaten as food and possibly also in stomachs of prey. For 3 rats half the starch content was plant; 3 other stomachs had 5, 40 and 50% plant material, Azolla fuliculoides. Differences in diet with age are described. H. chrysogaster was an adaptable and opportunist feeder, making use of transient plenty of insects, exploiting plagues among other species and using plants during shortage of food. They may control introduced pests such as perch, or control yabbies in irrigation ditches.

scholarly journals Venom duct origins of prey capture and defensive conotoxins in piscivorous Conus striatus

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
S. W. A. Himaya ◽  
Ai-Hua Jin ◽  
Brett Hamilton ◽  
Subash K. Rai ◽  
Paul Alewood ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Adaptive Evolution ◽  
Prey Capture ◽  
High Abundance ◽  
Dietary Shift ◽  
Species Radiation ◽  
Cone Snails ◽  
Conus Striatus

AbstractThe venom duct origins of predatory and defensive venoms has not been studied for hook-and-line fish hunting cone snails despite the pharmacological importance of their venoms. To better understand the biochemistry and evolution of injected predatory and defensive venoms, we compared distal, central and proximal venom duct sections across three specimens of C. striatus (Pionoconus) using proteomic and transcriptomic approaches. A total of 370 conotoxin precursors were identified from the whole venom duct transcriptome. Milked defensive venom was enriched with a potent cocktail of proximally expressed inhibitory α-, ω- and μ-conotoxins compared to milked predatory venom. In contrast, excitatory κA-conotoxins dominated both the predatory and defensive venoms despite their distal expression, suggesting this class of conotoxin can be selectively expressed from the same duct segment in response to either a predatory or defensive stimuli. Given the high abundance of κA-conotoxins in the Pionoconus clade, we hypothesise that the κA-conotoxins have evolved through adaptive evolution following their repurposing from ancestral inhibitory A superfamily conotoxins to facilitate the dietary shift to fish hunting and species radiation in this clade.

Dominance determines fish community biomass in a temperate seagrass ecosystem

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Aaron Matthius Eger ◽  
Rebecca J. Best ◽  
Julia Kathleen Baum
Keyword(s):  
Species Richness ◽  
Ecosystem Function ◽  
Fish Community ◽  
Prey Capture ◽  
Fish Communities ◽  
Functional Trait ◽  
Ecosystem Functions ◽  
Community Biomass ◽  
Ecosystem Valuation ◽  
Species Abundances

Biodiversity and ecosystem function are often correlated, but there are multiple hypotheses about the mechanisms underlying this relationship. Ecosystem functions such as primary or secondary production may be maximized by species richness, evenness in species abundances, or the presence or dominance of species with certain traits. Here, we combined surveys of natural fish communities (conducted in July and August, 2016) with morphological trait data to examine relationships between diversity and ecosystem function (quantified as fish community biomass) across 14 subtidal eelgrass meadows in the Northeast Pacific (54° N 130° W). We employed both taxonomic and functional trait measures of diversity to investigate if ecosystem function is driven by species diversity (complementarity hypothesis) or by the presence or dominance of species with particular trait values (selection or dominance hypotheses). After controlling for environmental variation, we found that fish community biomass is maximized when taxonomic richness and functional evenness is low, and in communities dominated by species with particular trait values – those associated with benthic habitats and prey capture. While previous work on fish communities has found that species richness is positively correlated with ecosystem function, our results instead highlight the capacity for regionally prevalent and locally dominant species to drive ecosystem function in moderately diverse communities. We discuss these alternate links between community composition and ecosystem function and consider their divergent implications for ecosystem valuation and conservation prioritization.

BIOEFFICACY OF PLANT EXTRACTS AGAINST MUSTARD APHID AND THEIR NATURAL ENEMIES

2019 ◽  
Vol 25 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
NARENDRA SINGH ◽  
N. S. BHADAURIA ◽  
PRADYUMN SINGH
Keyword(s):  
Plant Extracts ◽  
Natural Enemies ◽  
Untreated Control ◽  
Plant Material ◽  
Aphid Population ◽  
College Of Agriculture ◽  
Mustard Aphid ◽  
Plant Materials

The Bio-efficacy of eleven plant extracts namely viz.Neem Kernel; Rhizome of Ginger; Leaves of Datura, Gajarghas, Harsingar, Oak and Latjeera; Bulb of Garlic and Onion; Flowers of Chrysenthemum and Fruits of Chilli in the concentration of 5 percent and imidacloprid @ 40 g ai/ha was tested against mustard aphid, Lipaphiserysimi and their effect on D. rapae and Coccinellid beetle were tested in the Department of Entomology, College of Agriculture, Gwalior (M.P.). All the tested plant materials and imidacloprid @ 40 g ai/ha were effective significanty in reducing the aphid population over control.The aphid population in treated plots ranged from 7.2 to 40.0 as against 85.4 aphid/twig in untreated control. Among the plant material, three sprays of Neem Kernel were found most effective followed by three sprays of chilli fruits.All the plant extracts were found significantly safer to D. rapae and coccinellid bettle in comparision to insecticide (imidacloprid).

EVALUATION OF CLOVERS ON SANDY COASTAL SOIL

1977 ◽  
pp. 130-138 ◽  
Author(s):  
W.M. Williams ◽  
L.B. Anderson ◽  
B.M. Cooper
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Drought Stress ◽  
Sandy Soil ◽  
White Clover ◽  
Plant Material ◽  
Red Clover ◽  
Early Spring ◽  
Commercial Cultivars ◽  
Mediterranean Origin ◽  
Winter Annual

In evaluations of clover performances on summer-dry Himatangi sandy soil, it was found that none could match lucerne over summer. Emphasis was therefore placed on production in autumn-winter- early spring when lucerne growth was slow. Evaluations of some winter annual clover species suggested that Trifolium spumosum, T. pallidum, T. resupinatum, and T. vesiculosum would justify further investigation, along with T. subterraneum which is already used in pastures on this soil type. Among the perennial clover species, Kenya white clover (7'. semipilosum) showed outstanding recovery from drought and was the only species to produce significantly in autumn. However, it failed to grow in winter-early spring. Within red clover, materials of New Zealand x Moroccan origin substantially outproduced the commercial cultivars. Within white clover, material from Israel, Italy and Lebanon, as well as progeny of a selected New Zealand plant, showed more rapid recovery from drought stress and subsequently better winter growth than New Zealand commercial material ('Grasslands Huia'). The wider use of plant material of Mediterranean origin and of plants collected in New Zealand dryland pastures is advocated in development of clover cultivars for New Zealand dryland situations.

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