Natural History of Model Organisms: Neurogenomic insights into the behavior and vocal development of the zebra finch

The zebra finch (Taeniopygia guttata) is a socially monogamous and colonial opportunistic breeder with pronounced sexual differences in singing and plumage coloration. Its natural history has led to it becoming a model species for research into sex differences in vocal communication, as well as behavioral, neural and genomic theories of imitative auditory learning. As scientists tap into the genetic and behavioral diversity of both wild and captive lineages, the zebra finch will continue to inform research into culture, learning and social bonding, as well as adaptability to a changing climate.

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Natural History of Model Organisms: The big potential of the small frog Eleutherodactylus coqui

eLife ◽

10.7554/elife.73401 ◽

2022 ◽

Vol 11 ◽

Author(s):

Sarah E Westrick ◽

Mara Laslo ◽

Eva Fischer

Keyword(s):

Puerto Rico ◽

Natural History ◽

Puerto Rican ◽

Vocal Communication ◽

Model Organisms ◽

Future Research ◽

Eleutherodactylus Coqui ◽

Mating Call ◽

History Of ◽

New Habitats

The Puerto Rican coquí frog Eleutherodactylus coqui (E. coqui) is both a cultural icon and a species with an unusual natural history that has attracted attention from researchers in a number of different fields within biology. Unlike most frogs, the coquí frog skips the tadpole stage, which makes it of interest to developmental biologists. The frog is best known in Puerto Rico for its notoriously loud mating call, which has allowed researchers to study aspects of social behavior such as vocal communication and courtship, while the ability of coquí to colonize new habitats has been used to explore the biology of invasive species. This article reviews research on the natural history of E. coqui and opportunities for future research.

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Natural history of model organisms: The secret (group) life of Drosophila melanogaster larvae and why it matters to developmental ecology

Ecology and Evolution ◽

10.1002/ece3.7003 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 10 (24) ◽

pp. 13593-13601

Author(s):

Juliano Morimoto ◽

Zuzanna Pietras

Keyword(s):

Drosophila Melanogaster ◽

Natural History ◽

Model Organisms ◽

Group Life ◽

History Of

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New opportunities at the wild frontier

eLife ◽

10.7554/elife.06956 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 4 ◽

Cited By ~ 24

Author(s):

Jane Alfred ◽

Ian T Baldwin

Keyword(s):

Natural History ◽

Model Systems ◽

Model Organisms ◽

History Of

A better understanding of the natural history of model organisms will increase their value as model systems and also keep them at the forefront of research.

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Advancing biology through a deeper understanding of zebrafish ecology and evolution

eLife ◽

10.7554/elife.05635 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 4 ◽

Cited By ~ 77

Author(s):

David M Parichy

Keyword(s):

Population Genetics ◽

Natural History ◽

Biomedical Research ◽

Model Organisms ◽

Genomic Resources ◽

History Of ◽

And Behavior

Over the last two decades, the zebrafish has joined the ranks of premier model organisms for biomedical research, with a full suite of tools and genomic resources. Yet we still know comparatively little about its natural history. Here I review what is known about the natural history of the zebrafish, where significant gaps in our knowledge remain, and how a fuller appreciation of this organism's ecology and behavior, population genetics, and phylogeny can inform a variety of research endeavors.

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Breeding biology of the endangered Yellow Cardinal Gubernatrix cristata in Brazil

Revista Brasileira de Ornitologia ◽

10.1007/bf03544446 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 27 (1) ◽

pp. 44-52 ◽

Cited By ~ 2

Author(s):

Christian Beier ◽

Carla Suertegaray Fontana

Keyword(s):

Survival Rate ◽

Natural History ◽

Breeding Season ◽

Hatching Rate ◽

Molothrus Bonariensis ◽

Fledgling Survival ◽

Socially Monogamous ◽

History Of ◽

Nestling Survival ◽

Breeding Seasons

AbstractThe Yellow Cardinal, Gubernatrix cristata, has a small geographic range in Brazil, Uruguay, and Argentina. We studied the natural history of the only known Brazilian population of this “Endangered” species (∼50 individuals), which is socially monogamous and may breed cooperatively. During two breeding seasons (October to February 2013–2015), we monitored nests and described the main breeding traits. The breeding season started from the first week of October, with a peak of active nests in mid-November and lasted until mid-February. We found 32 nests, of which 30 were monitored. Female built the open-cup nests in six days (n = 1). All nests were built on Prosopis trees, on average at 2.4 m from the ground. Modal clutch size was three eggs (n = 19), and female incubated for 13 days on average (n = 7). Hatching rate was 76% and nestlings fledged after 16 days (n = 6). Nestling survival rate was 67% with mean productivity of 1.6 fledglings/successful nest. Shiny Cowbird, Molothrus bonariensis, parasitized nests of the Yellow Cardinal, with a frequency of 67% and intensity of 1.9 egg per parasitized nest (1–4 eggs; n = 13). Parasitism in nestlings by botfly larvae (Philornis sp.) occurred in 33% of nests with nestlings. Nest predation was the main cause of nest losses (73%) and we recorded a Geoffroy’s Cat, Leopardus geoffroyi, preying on a nest with eggs. The probability of success using the Program MARK was 13%. Fledgling survival rate during the first month outside the nest was 62% (8/13 fledglings). We found a longer breeding season, occurrence of second broods, and higher rates but fewer nest losses due to brood parasitism in comparison to the Argentinian population. We highlight the importance of natural history studies for the conservation of different populations of the same species.

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Laboratories, Museums, and the Comparative Perspective: Alan A. Boyden's Quest for Objectivity in Serological Taxonomy, 1924––1962

Historical Studies in the Natural Sciences ◽

10.1525/hsns.2010.40.2.149 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 40 (2) ◽

pp. 149-182 ◽

Cited By ~ 32

Author(s):

Bruno J. Strasser

Keyword(s):

Twentieth Century ◽

Natural History ◽

Experimental Approach ◽

Biological Diversity ◽

Life Sciences ◽

The United States ◽

Comparative Perspective ◽

Model Organisms ◽

Research Culture ◽

History Of

The rise of experimentation and the decline of natural history constitute the historiographic backbone to most narratives about the history of the life sciences in the twentieth century. As I argue here, however, natural history practices, such as the collection and comparison of data from numerous species, and experimental practices have actually converged throughout the century, giving rise to a new hybrid research culture which is essential to the contemporary life sciences. Looking at some examples of researchers who studied experimentally the relationships between organisms offers a unique window into how the norms, values, and practices of natural history entered the laboratory and, conversely, how the norms, values, and practices of experimentation transformed natural history. This paper concentrates on a largely overlooked episode in the history of the life sciences: the development of Alan A. Boyden's serological taxonomy. In the United States, from the late 1920s to the early 1960s, he was the most prominent advocate of this experimental approach in natural history. His quest for an objective method to understand the relationships among species, his creation of a serological museum where he could apply his comparative perspective, and his continued negotiations between natural historical and experimental traditions, illustrate the rise of a new hybrid research culture in the twentieth century. It also helps us solve a historiographic puzzle, namely how biological diversity become so central in the experimental life sciences, i.e., in a tradition which we generally understand as having focused on a few model organisms, and which relegated the study of biodiversity to naturalists and their museums.

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How is the moral stance related to the intentional stance and group thinking?

Behavioral and Brain Sciences ◽

10.1017/s0140525x19002413 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 43 ◽

Author(s):

Hannes Rakoczy

Keyword(s):

Natural History ◽

Social Cognitive ◽

Intentional Stance ◽

Cognitive Capacities ◽

Shared Intentionality ◽

History Of ◽

Group Thinking ◽

Moral Stance

Abstract The natural history of our moral stance told here in this commentary reveals the close nexus of morality and basic social-cognitive capacities. Big mysteries about morality thus transform into smaller and more manageable ones. Here, I raise questions regarding the conceptual, ontogenetic, and evolutionary relations of the moral stance to the intentional and group stances and to shared intentionality.

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