Sexual size dimorphism and geographic variation in forearm length of Rafinesque’s Big-eared Bat (Corynorhinus rafinesquii) and Southeastern Myotis (Myotis austroriparius)

Sexual size dimorphism is common in many taxa and results from various pressures, including competition, reproductive requirements, functional differences, and sexual recognition. For mammals, males are typically the larger sex; however, for vespertilionid bats, females are more often the larger sex. Forearm length, a feature that influences overall wing and body size and is often sexually dimorphic, is a standard morphological measurement taken from bats. Forearm length was measured in two vesper bat species (Corynorhinus rafinesquii and Myotis austroriparius) that co-occur across much of the southeastern United States. Forearm length was greater in females of both species, and females of both species also exhibited regional variation in forearm length. By having a longer forearm and therefore being larger in size, females may be more maneuverable and better equipped to carry young. While this study did not directly investigate the mechanisms behind regional variation in forearm length, it is possible this is the result of variability in habitat types, resources, or thermodynamic constraints. Knowledge of sexually dimorphic characteristics is important for obtaining a general understanding of a species and its morphology.

Differences in microhabitat and morphology of two sympatric congeneric species Palaquium maliliensis and Palaquium obovatum in the education forest of Hasanuddin University

Two species of Palaquium (P. maliliensis and P. obovatum) were found coexist in same habitat in the educational forest of Hasanuddin University (Unhas). Two or more species are living in a habitat could be formed from similar parent through genetic isolation process without geographic isolation and was classified as sympatric congeneric species. So far, sympatric congeneric species is still controversial among researchers. Based on this case, the purpose of this study was to determine the microhabitat and morphological differences between the two species. The methods of the study were conducted by purposively selecting 21 samples of P. maliliensis and 20 samples of P. obovatum at the tree level. In each samples found, the microhabitat characteristics (topographic position and slope) and morphological characteristics (leaf, buttress root, and morphological in general) were observed. Morphological measurement data were analyzed with correlation test for intra-species variable and real difference test for inter-species variable. This study concluded that the slope was one of the major microhabitat factors that has driven the process of sympatric speciation between P. maliliensis and P. obovatum. In morphological characteristics, differences between P. maliliensis and P. obovatum appeared in the form of leaves.

ORPHOLOGICAL VARIATIONS FOR THE TAXONOMIC IDENTIFICATION OF SOME SPECIES OF ACACIA FROM ZARIA, KADUNA STATE NIGERIA

Acacia belongs to the family fabaceae among the largest legume genera consisting of eighteen species with the majority of the species distributed in tropical and sub-tropical Africa. Classification of Acacia have remained a daunting task due to it wide spread and also hampered by is large number of species ,prevalence of morphological convergence. Morphological variations in foliar, thorn, inflorescence of some Acacia species found in Zaria for their taxonomic identification at species level were evaluated were Seven species and one variety of Acacia were taxonomically classified using morphological characters. In almost the species leaves were compound bipinnate, alternate and pinnulesare oblong. However the pinnules of A. senegal are obovate. In A. auriculiformis the leaves are simple and sickle-like in shape. Leaves texture ranges from glabrous to pubescent and leaf margin were entire in all the species. The morphological measurement parameters were analyzed using ANOVA cooperation and the results indicate variations among the species. The variations observed in some of the characters could be of taxonomic importance in the identification of the species. Overall ranking indicated that Acacia sieberiana var sieberiana and Acacia sieberiana var villosa were the best with high values of morphological characters of pinna length (3.50±0.11 cm and 3.82±0.16 cm respectively) and number of pinna (18.80±1.32 and 41.70±1.52 respectively). The high values of pinna could be used in solving taxonomic problems associated with Acacia species and in mapping out breeding strategies for the production of cultivars with better foliar yield of Acacia species in Nigeria

Morphological variation of plantain squirrel Callosciurus notatus (Boddaert, 1785) (Rodentia: Sciuridae) population in West Sumatra, Indonesia

Tjong DH, Sari RM, Roesma DI. 2020. Morphological variation of plantain squirrel Callosciurus notatus (Boddaert, 1785) (Rodentia: Sciuridae) population in West Sumatra, Indonesia. Asian J For 21: 54-60. A study about the morphological variation of plantain squirrel among several populations in West Sumatra has been done in West Sumatra. There were 38 specimens of C. notatus collected from Padang, Lubuk Basung, Sangir, and Baso by using a survey and direct collection method. The morphometric measurement was conducted in the Laboratory of Genetic and Biomolecular, Department of Biology, Faculty of Mathematics and Natural Sciences, Andalas University. Morphological measurement data based on 21 external characters and 35 skull characters were analyzed by the Kruskall Wallis test, Principal Component Analysis (PCA), and Unweighted Pair Group Method Arithmetic Average (UPGMA). The result showed that there was morphological variation in ten body characters and nine skull characters. It is necessary to do further research to determine what environmental factors specifically influence certain morphological characters.

Diversity of cucumber fruit tip is attributed to the epistatic QTL pairs Ft4.1 and Ft6.1

BackgroundThe shape of fruit tip is critical to appearance quality and commodity value of cucumber (Cucumis sativus L.). Although diversity of cucumber fruit tip is rich, the genetic basis and molecular mechanism were poorly understood. In this study, the morphological and histological features of fruit tip were investigated to accurately evaluate the diversity in cucumber germplasm. QTLs of fruit tip were genetically mapped by using F2 and RILs populations. Candidate genes of major-effect QTLs were predicted. Results The appearance of cucumber fruit tip was generally divided into sharp, oval-round and blunt-round categories, but morphological measurement showed that the angle of fruit tip was continuously distribute in range of 99~173° and the fruit tip index (the ratio of diameter and length of tips) was in range of 1.4~3.5. Histological analysis suggested that the different structures of fruit tips were owed to the different distribution of cell number in vertical and horizontal direction, rather than difference in cell size. In total, thirty fruit tip related QTLs were identified from two mapping populations including a F2 population derived from EC1 (blunt round tip) × 8419s-1 (sharp tip) and a RILs population derived from IL52 (oval round tip) × CCMC (sharp tip). Two major-effect QTLs were detected, of which Ft4.1 was detected in both mapping population, while Ft6.1 was only identified in F2 population. The phenotypes of Ft4.1 were epistatically suppressed by dominant Ft6.1 genotype, suggesting that Ft6.1 has epistatic dominance interaction to Ft4.1. The candidate genes of Ft4.1 were predicted based on genome re-sequencing of parental lines, including CsEXT (Extension-like family protein), CsPRK (leucine-rich repeat protein kinase protein) and CsRNApase (RNA polymerase beta subunit protein), of which CsEXT and CsPRK play important functions during cell division and expansion. ConclusionsDifferent shapes of fruit tip were owed to the different frequency and orientation of cell division in tip structures. The fruit tip variation in cucumber maybe controlled by the major QTLs Ft4.1 and Ft6.1 through epistatic interaction.

Three-Dimensional Morphological Measurement Method for a Fruit Tree Canopy Based on Kinect Sensor Self-Calibration

Perception of the fruit tree canopy is a vital technology for the intelligent control of a modern standardized orchard. Due to the complex three-dimensional (3D) structure of the fruit tree canopy, morphological parameters extracted from two-dimensional (2D) or single-perspective 3D images are not comprehensive enough. Three-dimensional information from different perspectives must be combined in order to perceive the canopy information efficiently and accurately in complex orchard field environment. The algorithms used for the registration and fusion of data from different perspectives and the subsequent extraction of fruit tree canopy related parameters are the keys to the problem. This study proposed a 3D morphological measurement method for a fruit tree canopy based on Kinect sensor self-calibration, including 3D point cloud generation, point cloud registration and canopy information extraction of apple tree canopy. Using 32 apple trees (Yanfu 3 variety) morphological parameters of the height (H), maximum canopy width (W) and canopy thickness (D) were calculated. The accuracy and applicability of this method for extraction of morphological parameters were statistically analyzed. The results showed that, on both sides of the fruit trees, the average relative error (ARE) values of the morphological parameters including the fruit tree height (H), maximum tree width (W) and canopy thickness (D) between the calculated values and measured values were 3.8%, 12.7% and 5.0%, respectively, under the V1 mode; the ARE values under the V2 mode were 3.3%, 9.5% and 4.9%, respectively; and the ARE values under the V1 and V2 merged mode were 2.5%, 3.6% and 3.2%, respectively. The measurement accuracy of the tree width (W) under the double visual angle mode had a significant advantage over that under the single visual angle mode. The 3D point cloud reconstruction method based on Kinect self-calibration proposed in this study has high precision and stable performance, and the auxiliary calibration objects are readily portable and easy to install. It can be applied to different experimental scenes to extract 3D information of fruit tree canopies and has important implications to achieve the intelligent control of standardized orchards.