| similarity indices for spatial ecological data. | we present a method for assessing similarity between species maps of presence and absence or abundance that emphasizes global features while ignoring minor local dissimilarities. the method arranges sites into small groups, or cliques, and allows controlled changes to be made within cliques to reduce the influence of local discrepancies. resulting measures of similarity are visually more satisfactory than traditional indices. we show that the similarity indices are useful for model selection by ... | 2001 | 11414575 |
| phenotypic flexibility in cutaneous water loss and lipids of the stratum corneum. | when vertebrates invaded land during the carboniferous period, they were exposed not only to new ecological opportunities but also to a desiccating environment. to maintain cellular water homeostasis, natural selection modified the integument of pioneering terrestrial animals, enabling them to reduce water loss through the skin. in desert environments, where ambient temperatures (t(a)) can reach 50 degrees c, relative humidities are low and drinking water is scarce, integumentary modifications t ... | 2003 | 12966049 |
| quantifying density dependence in a bird population using human disturbance. | although density dependence has long been recognised as vital to population regulation, there have been relatively few studies demonstrating it spatially in wildlife populations, often due to the confounding effects of variation in habitat quality. we report on a study of woodlarks lullula arborea, a species of european conservation concern, breeding on lowland heath in dorset, england. we take the novel approach of utilising the birds' response to human disturbance, which resulted in much of th ... | 2007 | 17479296 |
| cutaneous and respiratory water loss in larks from arid and mesic environments. | birds from deserts generally have lower total evaporative water loss (tewl), the sum of cutaneous (cwl) and respiratory water loss (rwl), than species from mesic areas. we investigated the role of cwl and rwl as a function of air temperature (t(a)) in hoopoe larks (alaemon alaudipes) and dunn's larks (eremalauda dunni) from the arabian desert and skylarks (alauda arvensis) and woodlarks (lullula arborea) from temperate mesic grasslands. the proportional contribution of cwl to tewl in all larks a ... | 2013 | 12601615 |
| physiological adjustments to arid and mesic environments in larks (alaudidae). | because deserts are characterized by low food availability, high ambient temperature extremes, and absence of drinking water, one might expect that birds that live in these conditions exhibit a lower basal metabolic rate (bmr), reduced total evaporative water loss (tewl), and greater ability to cope with high air temperatures than their mesic counterparts. to minimize confounding effects of phylogeny, we compared the physiological performance of four species of larks at ambient temperatures (t(a ... | 2006 | 12177833 |
| harmonizing outdoor recreation and bird conservation targets in protected areas: applying available monitoring data to facilitate collaborative management at the regional scale. | in protected areas managers have to achieve conservation targets while providing opportunities for outdoor recreation. this dual mandate causes conflicts in choosing between management options. furthermore, the persistence of a protected species within the management unit often depends on how conservation areas elsewhere in the region are managed. we present an assessment procedure to guide groups of managers in aligning outdoor recreation and bird conservation targets for a regional scale prote ... | 2017 | 28467949 |
| importance of climatic and environmental change in the demography of a multi-brooded passerine, the woodlark lullula arborea. | 1. we examined the influence of local weather conditions on reproductive success, timing of breeding and survival in a population of a multi-brooded ground nesting passerine (woodlark lullula arborea) over 35 years. 2. woodlarks laid larger clutches when rainfall was low and temperature high during the egg-laying and pre-laying period. nest success increased with higher temperatures during the nesting period. in successful nests, the number of chicks fledged per egg laid was greater when weather ... | 2009 | 19594660 |
| a spatiotemporal stochastic process model for species spread. | we use a spatiotemporal markov process to model the spread of an ecological population through its environment over time. available habitat is divided into sites, and a parametric function of spatial variables is used to model the probability that one site is colonized from another. this allows us both to make predictions about the future spread of a population, and to determine which are the important factors governing colonizations. the model evolves in discrete time, allowing the population d ... | 2003 | 14601765 |
| microbiome assembly of avian eggshells and their potential as transgenerational carriers of maternal microbiota. | the microbiome is essential for development, health and homeostasis throughout an animal's life. yet, the origins and transmission processes governing animal microbiomes remain elusive for non-human vertebrates, oviparous vertebrates in particular. eggs may function as transgenerational carriers of the maternal microbiome, warranting characterisation of egg microbiome assembly. here, we investigated maternal and environmental contributions to avian eggshell microbiota in wild passerine birds: wo ... | 2018 | 29445132 |
| multi-level comparisons of cloacal, skin, feather and nest-associated microbiota suggest considerable influence of horizontal acquisition on the microbiota assembly of sympatric woodlarks and skylarks. | working toward a general framework to understand the role of microbiota in animal biology requires the characterisation of animal-associated microbial communities and identification of the evolutionary and ecological factors shaping their variation. in this study, we described the microbiota in the cloaca, brood patch skin and feathers of two species of birds and the microbial communities in their nest environment. we compared patterns of resemblance between these microbial communities at differ ... | 2017 | 29191217 |
| fecal sacs do not increase nest predation in a ground nester. | most altricial birds remove their nestlings' feces from the nest, but the evolutionary forces driving this behavior are poorly understood. a possible adaptive explanation for this could be that birds avoid the attraction of nest predators to their nests due to the visual or olfactory cues produced by feces (nest predation hypothesis). this hypothesis has received contrasting support indicating that additional experimental studies are needed, particularly with respect to the visual component of f ... | 2018 | 30956930 |