| 1. |
- Martinez, Alejandro, et al.
(författare)
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Human access impacts biodiversity of microscopic animals in sandy beaches
- 2020
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Ingår i: Communications Biology. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 2399-3642. ; 3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Whereas most work to understand impacts of humans on biodiversity on coastal areas has focused on large, conspicuous organisms, we highlight effects of tourist access on the diversity of microscopic marine animals (meiofauna). We used a DNA metabarcoding approach with an iterative and phylogeny-based approach for the taxonomic assignment of meiofauna and relate diversity patterns to the numbers of tourists accessing sandy beaches on an otherwise un-impacted island National Park. Tourist frequentation, independently of differences in sediment granulometry, beach length, and other potential confounding factors, affected meiofaunal diversity in the shallow “swash” zone right at the mean water mark; the impacts declined with water depth (up to 2 m). The indicated negative effect on meiofauna may have a consequence on all the biota including the higher trophic levels. Thus, we claim that it is important to consider restricting access to beaches in touristic areas, in order to preserve biodiversity.
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| 2. |
- Dougherty, Liam R., et al.
(författare)
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A systematic map of studies testing the relationship between temperature and animal reproduction
- 2024
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Ingår i: Ecological Solutions and Evidence. - : John Wiley & Sons. - 2688-8319. ; 5:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Exposure to extreme temperatures can negatively affect animal reproduction, by disrupting the ability of individuals to produce any offspring (fertility), or the number of offspring produced by fertile individuals (fecundity). This has important ecological consequences, because reproduction is the ultimate measure of population fitness: a reduction in reproductive output lowers the population growth rate and increases the extinction risk. Despite this importance, there have been no large-scale summaries of the evidence for effect of temperature on reproduction.We provide a systematic map of studies testing the relationship between temperature and animal reproduction. We systematically searched for published studies that statistically test for a direct link between temperature and animal reproduction, in terms of fertility, fecundity or indirect measures of reproductive potential (gamete and gonad traits).Overall, we collated a large and rich evidence base, with 1654 papers that met our inclusion criteria, encompassing 1191 species.The map revealed several important research gaps. Insects made up almost half of the dataset, but reptiles and amphibians were uncommon, as were non-arthropod invertebrates. Fecundity was the most common reproductive trait examined, and relatively few studies measured fertility. It was uncommon for experimental studies to test exposure of different life stages, exposure to short-term heat or cold shock, exposure to temperature fluctuations, or to independently assess male and female effects. Studies were most often published in journals focusing on entomology and pest control, ecology and evolution, aquaculture and fisheries science, and marine biology. Finally, while individuals were sampled from every continent, there was a strong sampling bias towards mid-latitudes in the Northern Hemisphere, such that the tropics and polar regions are less well sampled.This map reveals a rich literature of studies testing the relationship between temperature and animal reproduction, but also uncovers substantial missing treatment of taxa, traits, and thermal regimes. This database will provide a valuable resource for future quantitative meta-analyses, and direct future studies aiming to fill identified gaps.
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| 3. |
- Frungieri, Graziano, et al.
(författare)
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Shear-Induced Heteroaggregation of Oppositely Charged Colloidal Particles
- 2020
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Ingår i: Langmuir. - : American Chemical Society (ACS). - 0743-7463 .- 1520-5827. ; 36:36, s. 10739-10749
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- This paper investigates numerically the shear-induced aggregation of mixed populations of colloidal particles leading to the formation of clusters. Suspensions with different amounts of positively and negatively charged colloidal particles are simulated. To resolve the aggregation kinetics and structural properties of the formed clusters, we resort to a mixed deterministic-stochastic simulation method. The method is built on a combination of a Monte Carlo algorithm to sample a statistically expected sequence of encounter events between the suspended particles and a discrete element method built in the framework of Stokesian dynamics to simulate the encounters in a fully predictive manner. Results reveal a strong influence of the composition of the population on both the aggregation kinetics and the aggregate structure. In particular, we observe a size-stabilization phenomenon taking place in the suspension when the relative concentration of the majority particles lies in the range 80-85%; i.e., starting from primary particles, after a short growth period, we observed a cessation of aggregation. Inspection of the aggregate morphology shows that the formed clusters are composed of few minority particles placed in the inner region, while the aggregate surface is covered by majority particles, acting to provide a shielding effect against further growth.
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