Dispersal plays an important role in the population structure and resilience of species. To gain a better understanding of dispersal in the endangered Australian marsupial, the dibbler (Parantechinus apicalis), we screened 199 individuals from seven locations within the Fitzgerald River National Park, Western Australia, for genetic variation at 17 microsatellite loci. There were high levels of genetic variation within all sites (gene diversity ranged from 0.68 to 0.71) as well as significant genetic differentiation between...

Ocean acidification (OA) poses a major threat to marine organisms, particularly during reproduction when externally shed gametes are vulnerable to changes in seawater pH. Accordingly, several studies on OA have focused on how changes in seawater pH influence sperm behaviour and/or rates of in vitro fertilization. By contrast, few studies have examined how pH influences pre-fertilization gamete interactions, which are crucial during natural spawning events in most externally fertilizing taxa. One mechanism of gamete interaction...

Ejaculate traits vary extensively among individuals and species, but little is known about their variation among populations of the same species. Here, we investigated patterns of intraspecific variation in male reproductive investment in the terrestrial-breeding frog Pseudophryne guentheri. Like most anurans, breeding activity in P. guentheri is cued by precipitation, and therefore the timing and duration of breeding seasons differ among geographically separated populations, potentially leading to differences in the level of sperm competition. We...

Little is known about the extent of genetic connectivity along continuous coastlines in manta rays or whether site visitation is influenced by relatedness. Such information is pertinent to defining population boundaries and understanding localised dispersal patterns and behaviour. Here, we use 3057 genome-wide single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) to evaluate population genetic structure and assess levels of relatedness at aggregation sites of reef manta rays (Mobula alfredi) in southern Mozambique (n = 114). Contrary to indications...

Dizygotic twinning, the simultaneous birth of siblings when multiple ova are released, is an evolutionary paradox. Twin bearing mothers often have elevated fitness1-5; but despite twinning being heritable6, twin births only occur at low frequencies in human populations7. We resolve this paradox by showing that twinning and non-twinning are not competing strategies, instead dizygotic twinning is the outcome of an adaptive conditional ovulatory strategy of switching from single to double ovulation with increasing age. This...

In response to the reduction in fitness associated with sperm competition, males are expected to evolve tactics that hinder female remating. For example, females often display a post-mating reduction in their sexual receptivity that has been shown to be mediated by proteins contained in a male’s seminal fluid (sfps). However, although there has been comprehensive research on sfps in genetically well characterized species, few non-model species have been studied in such detail. We initially confirm...

Kelps (order Laminariales) are foundation species in temperate and arctic seas globally, but they are in decline in many places. Laminarian kelp have an alternation of generations and this poses challenges for experimental studies due to the difficulties in achieving zoospore release and gametophyte growth. Here we review and synthesize the protocols that have been used to induce zoospore release in kelps to identify commonalities and provide guidance on best practices. We found 171 papers,...

The concepts of traits, plant functional types (PFT), and functional communities are effective tools for the study of complex phenomena such as plant community assembly. Here, we (1) suggest a procedure formalising the classification of response traits to construct a PFT system; (2) integrate the PFT, and species compositional data to formally define functional communities; and, (3) identify environmental drivers that underpin the functional-community patterns.A species–trait data set featuring species pooled from two study sites...

The RNA-binding pentatricopeptide repeat (PPR) family comprises hundreds to thousands of genes in most plants, but only a few dozen in algae, evidence of massive gene expansions during land plant evolution. The nature and timing of these expansions has not been well-defined due to the sparse sequence data available from early-diverging land plant lineages. We exploit the comprehensive OneKP dataset of over 1,000 transcriptomes from diverse plants and algae to establish a clear picture of...

1. Greater understanding of positive interspecific interactions in nutrient-poor soils is a priority, particularly in phosphorus- (P) limited ecosystems where plants with contrasting nutrient-acquiring strategies co-occur. It is also relevant to agro-ecosystems, since global P stocks are being depleted. In this study, we assess positive interactions between sympatric plants with contrasting nutrient-acquiring strategies from highly P-impoverished soils from the biodiversity hotspot of south-western Australia. 2. Four plant species (Banksia menziesii, Eucalyptus marginata, Verticordia nitens, and...

Many phylogenomic studies based on transcriptomes have been limited to “single-copy” genes due to methodological challenges in homology and orthology inferences. Only a relatively small number of studies have explored analyses beyond reconstructing species relationships. We sampled 69 transcriptomes in the hyperdiverse plant clade Caryophyllales and 27 outgroups from annotated genomes across eudicots. Using a combined similarity- and phylogenetic tree-based approach, we recovered 10,960 homolog groups, where each was represented by at least eight ingroup...

Females that mate multiply have the possibility to exert postcopulatory choice and select more compatible sperm to fertilize eggs. Prior work suggests that dissimilarity in major histocompatibility complex (MHC) plays an important role in determining genetic compatibility between partners. Favouring a partner with dissimilar MHC alleles would result in offspring with high MHC diversity and therefore with enhanced survival thanks to increased resistance to pathogens and parasites. The high variability of MHC genes may further...

Body shape is predicted to differ among species for functional reasons and in relation to environmental niche and phylogenetic history. We quantified morphological differences in shape and size among 98.5% of the 129 species and all 21 genera of the Australo-Papuan endemic myobatrachid frogs to test the hypothesis that habitat type predicts body shape in this radiation. We tested this hypothesis in a phylogenetic context at two taxonomic levels: across the entire radiation and within...

An uppermost Gzhelian bioherm discovered in the central highlands of Timor Leste contains abundant foraminifera belonging to 17 genera. Representatives of the families Biseriamminidae, Biwaellidae, Bradyinidae, Cornuspiridae, Lasiodiscidae, Palaeotextulariidae, Pseudotaxidae, Ozawainellidae, Schubertellidae, Schwagerinidae, Staffellidae and Textrataxidae are present, including 21 species referred to known types and 12 species left in open nomenclature. Two new Schwagerina species are described: Schwagerina timorensis new species, and Schwagerina maubissensis new species. The assemblage belongs to the uppermost Gzhelian Schwagerina...

In many species, females exposed to increased sexual activity experience reductions in longevity. Here, in Drosophila melanogaster, we report an additional effect on females brought about by sexual interactions, an effect that spans generations. We subjected females to a sexual treatment consisting of different levels of sexual activity and then investigated patterns of mortality in their offspring. We found reduced probabilities of survival, increases in the rate of senescence and a pattern of reduced mean...

1. Ecological filter models derived from community assembly theory can inform restoration planning by highlighting management actions most likely to affect community composition. Despite growing interest in these models, many restoration studies solely manipulate a single filter—the biotic filter by altering interspecific competition in studies—while ignoring abiotic and dispersal filters that may also influence restoration success. 2. To examine how manipulating all three filters (biotic, abiotic, dispersal) affected restoration in an annual-type grassland, we seeded...

Studies of size-related plant traits have established a suite of mathematical functions describing whole plant investment and allocation. In parallel, studies of plant “economic spectra” have measured the scaling and variance composition of traits related to the major dimensions of both structure and function. Here we explore the intersection of these two broad areas by exploring the notion that many leaf economic traits are invariant with species differences in adult plant size. Invariant traits are...

Theory predicts that females should invest least in mate searching when young, but increase their effort with age if they remain unmated. Few studies have examined variation in female sexual signalling. Female Dawson's burrowing bees (Amegilla dawsoni) search for males by signalling their receptivity on emergence, but many leave the emergence site unmated and must attract males at feeding sites. Female bees prevented from mating on emergence had more extreme versions of cuticular hydrocarbon profiles...

Ecosystem retrogression following long-term pedogenesis is attributed to phosphorus (P) limitation of primary productivity. Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) enhance P acquisition for most terrestrial plants, but it has been suggested that this strategy becomes less effective in strongly weathered soils with extremely low P availability. Using next generation sequencing of the large subunit ribosomal RNA gene in roots and soil, we compared the composition and diversity of AMF communities in three contrasting stages of a...

Genetic subdivision within a species is a vital component of the evolution of biodiversity. In some species of Acropora corals in Western Australia, conspecific individuals spawn in two seasons 6 months apart, which has the potential to impede gene flow and result in genetic divergence. Genetic comparison of sympatric spring and autumn spawners of Acropora samoensis was conducted to assess the level of reproductive isolation and genetic divergence between the spawning groups based on multiple...

Reversing anthropogenic impacts on habitat structure is frequently successful through restoration, but the mechanisms linking habitat change, community reassembly and recovery of ecosystem functioning remain unknown. We test for the influence of edge effects and matrix habitat restoration on the reassembly of dung beetle communities and consequent recovery of dung removal rates across tropical forest edges. Using path modelling, we disentangle the relative importance of community-weighted trait means and functional trait dispersion from total biomass...

Aim: Predicting distribution patterns of whale sharks (Rhincodon typus, Smith 1828) in the open ocean remains elusive owing to few pelagic records. We developed multivariate distribution models of seasonally variant whale shark distributions derived from tuna purse-seine fishery data. We tested the hypotheses that whale sharks use a narrow temperature range, are more abundant in productive waters and select sites closer to continents than the open ocean. Location: Indian Ocean. Methods: We compared a 17-year...

Primary Open Angle Glaucoma (POAG) is a common neurodegenerative disease characterized by the selective and gradual loss of retinal ganglion cells (RGCs). Aging and increased intraocular pressure (IOP) are glaucoma risk factors; nevertheless patients deteriorate at all levels of IOP, implying other causative factors. Recent evidence presents mitochondrial oxidative phosphorylation (OXPHOS) complex-I impairments in POAG. Leber Hereditary Optic Neuropathy (LHON) patients suffer specific and rapid loss of RGCs, predominantly in young adult males, due to...

1. Long-term pedogenesis leads to important changes in the availability of soil nutrients, especially nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P). Changes in the availability of micronutrients can also occur, but are less well understood. We explored whether changes in leaf nutrient concentrations and resorption were consistent with a shift from N to P limitation of plant productivity with soil age along a >2-million year dune chronosequence in south-western Australia. We also compared these traits among plants...

Plants are predicted to show floral adaptation to geographic variation in the most effective pollinator, potentially leading to reproductive isolation and genetic divergence. Many sexually deceptive orchids attract just a single pollinator species, limiting opportunities to experimentally investigate pollinator switching. Here we investigate Drakaea concolor, which attracts two pollinator species. Using pollinator choice tests, we detected two morphologically similar ecotypes within D. concolor. The common ecotype only attracted Zaspilothynnus gilesi, while the rare ecotype also...