Explore the vast range of titles available.

The open‐data scientific philosophy is being widely adopted and proving to promote considerable progress in ecology and evolution. Open‐data global data bases now exist on animal migration, species distribution, conservation status, etc. However, a gap exists for data on population dynamics spanning the rich diversity of the animal kingdom world‐wide. This information is fundamental to our understanding of the conditions that have shaped variation in animal life histories and their relationships with the environment, as well as the determinants of invasion and extinction. Matrix population models (MPMs) are among the most widely used demographic tools by animal ecologists. MPMs project population dynamics based on the reproduction, survival and development of individuals in a population over their life cycle. The outputs from MPMs have direct biological interpretations, facilitating comparisons among animal species as different as Caenorhabditis elegans, Loxodonta africana and Homo sapiens. Thousands of animal demographic records exist in the form of MPMs, but they are dispersed throughout the literature, rendering comparative analyses difficult. Here, we introduce the COMADRE Animal Matrix Database, an open‐data online repository, which in its version 1.0.0 contains data on 345 species world‐wide, from 402 studies with a total of 1625 population projection matrices. COMADRE also contains ancillary information (e.g. ecoregion, taxonomy, biogeography, etc.) that facilitates interpretation of the numerous demographic metrics that can be derived from its MPMs. We provide R code to some of these examples. Synthesis: We introduce the COMADRE Animal Matrix Database, a resource for animal demography. Its open‐data nature, together with its ancillary information, will facilitate comparative analysis, as will the growing availability of databases focusing on other aspects of the rich animal diversity, and tools to query and combine them. Through future frequent updates of COMADRE, and its integration with other online resources, we encourage animal ecologists to tackle global ecological and evolutionary questions with unprecedented sample size.

Wildlife Demography compiles the multitude of available estimation techniques based on sex and age data, and presents these varying techniques in one organized, unified volume. Designed to guide researchers to the most appropriate estimator based upon their particular data set and the desired level of study precision, this book provides quantitative consideration, statistical models, estimator variance, assumptions and examples of use.The authors focus on estimation techniques using sex and age ratios because this data is relatively easy to collect and commonly used by wildlife management * Applicable to a wide array of wildlife species, including game and non-game birds and mammals * Features more than 100 annotated examples illustrating application of statistical methods* Includes more than 640 references of the analysis of nontagging data and the factors that may influence interpretation* Derives historical and ad hoc demographic methods in a modern statistical framework

The EMX (Empty Spiracles Homeobox) genes EMX1 and EMX2 are two homeodomain gene members of the EMX family of transcription factors involved in the regulation of various biological processes, such as cell proliferation, migration, and differentiation, during brain development and neural crest migration. They play a role in the specification of positional identity, the proliferation of neural stem cells, and the differentiation of certain neuronal cell phenotypes. In general, they act as transcription factors in early embryogenesis and neuroembryogenesis from metazoans to higher vertebrates. The EMX1 and EMX2 ’s potential as tumor suppressor genes has been suggested in some cancers. Our work showed that EMX1 / EMX2 act as tumor suppressors in sarcomas by repressing the activity of stem cell regulatory genes ( OCT4 , SOX2 , KLF4 , MYC , NANOG , NES , and PROM1 ). EMX protein downregulation, therefore, induced the malignance and stemness of cells both in vitro and in vivo. In murine knockout (KO) models lacking Emx genes, 3MC-induced sarcomas were more aggressive and infiltrative, had a greater capacity for tumor self-renewal, and had higher stem cell gene expression and nestin expression than those in wild-type models. These results showing that EMX genes acted as stemness regulators were reproduced in different subtypes of sarcoma. Therefore, it is possible that the EMX genes could have a generalized behavior regulating proliferation of neural crest-derived progenitors. Together, these results indicate that the EMX1 and EMX2 genes negatively regulate these tumor-altering populations or cancer stem cells, acting as tumor suppressors in sarcoma.

Rainfall exerts a controlling influence on the availability and quality of vegetation and surface water for herbivores in African terrestrial ecosystems. We analyse temporal trends and variation in rainfall in the Maasai Mara ecosystem of East Africa and infer their implications for animal population and biodiversity dynamics. The data originated from 15 rain gauges in the Mara region (1965-2015) and one station in Narok Town (1913-2015), in Kenya's Narok County. This is the first comprehensive and most detailed analysis of changes in rainfall in the region of its kind. Our results do not support the current predictions of the International Panel of Climate Change (IPCC) of very likely increases of rainfall over parts of Eastern Africa. The dry season rainfall component increased during 1935-2015 but annual rainfall decreased during 1962-2015 in Narok Town. Monthly rainfall was more stable and higher in the Mara than in Narok Town, likely because the Mara lies closer to the high-precipitation areas along the shores of Lake Victoria. Predominantly deterministic and persistent inter-annual cycles and extremely stable seasonal rainfall oscillations characterize rainfall in the Mara and Narok regions. The frequency of severe droughts increased and floods intensified in the Mara but droughts became less frequent and less severe in Narok Town. The timings of extreme droughts and floods coincided with significant periodicity in rainfall oscillations, implicating strong influences of global atmospheric and oceanic circulation patterns on regional rainfall variability. These changing rainfall patterns have implications for animal population dynamics. The increase in dry season rainfall during 1935-2015 possibly counterbalanced the impacts of resource scarcity generated by the declining annual rainfall during 1965-2015 in Narok Town. However, the increasing rainfall extremes in the Mara can be expected to create conditions conducive to outbreaks of infectious animal diseases and reduced vegetation quality for herbivores, particularly when droughts and floods persist over multiple years. The more extreme wet season rainfall may also alter herbivore space use, including migration patterns.

Occupancy models are increasingly applied to data from wildlife camera‐trap (CT) surveys to estimate distribution, habitat use, or relative abundance of unmarked animals. Fundamental to the occupancy modeling framework is the temporal pattern of detections at camera stations, which is influenced by animal population density and the speed and scale of animal movement. How these factors interact with CT sampling designs to affect the interpretation of occupancy parameter estimates is unclear. We developed a simple yet ecologically relevant animal movement simulation to create CT detections for animal populations varying in movement rate, home range area, and population density. We also varied CT sampling design by the duration of sampling and the density of CTs in our simulated domain. A single‐species occupancy model was fitted to simulated detection histories, and model‐estimated probabilities of occupancy were compared to the asymptotic proportion of area occupied (PAO), calculated as the union of all simulated home ranges. Occupancy model parameter estimates were sensitive to simulated movement and sampling scenarios. Occupancy models overestimated asymptotic PAO when a low population density of simulated animals moved quickly over large home ranges and this positive bias was insensitive to sampling duration. Conversely, asymptotic PAO was underestimated when simulated animals moved slowly in large‐ or intermediately sized home ranges. This negative bias decreased with increasing sampling duration and a lower density of CTs. Our results emphasize that the interpretation of occupancy models depends on the underlying processes driving CT detections, specifically animal movement and population density, and that model estimates may not reliably reflect variation in these processes. We recommend carefully defining occupancy if it is applied to CT data in order to better match sampling and analytical frameworks to the ecology of sampled wildlife species.

Although deforestation and forest degradation have long been considered the most significant threats to tropical biodiversity, across Southeast Asia (Northeast India, Indochina, Sundaland, Philippines) substantial areas of natural habitat have few wild animals (>1 kg), bar a few hunting-tolerant species. To document hunting impacts on vertebrate populations regionally, we conducted an extensive literature review, including papers in local journals and reports of governmental and nongovernmental agencies. Evidence from multiple sites indicated animal populations declined precipitously across the region since approximately 1980, and many species are now extirpated from substantial portions of their former ranges. Hunting is by far the greatest immediate threat to the survival of most of the region's endangered vertebrates. Causes of recent overhunting include improved access to forests and markets, improved hunting technology, and escalating demand for wild meat, wildlife-derived medicinal products, and wild animals as pets. Although hunters often take common species, such as pigs or rats, for their own consumption, they take rarer species opportunistically and sell surplus meat and commercially valuable products. There is also widespread targeted hunting of high-value species. Consequently, as currently practiced, hunting cannot be considered sustainable anywhere in the region, and in most places enforcement of protected-area and protected-species legislation is weak. The international community's focus on cross-border trade fails to address overexploitation of wildlife because hunting and the sale of wild meat is largely a local issue and most of the harvest is consumed in villages, rural towns, and nearby cities. In addition to improved enforcement, efforts to engage hunters and manage wildlife populations through sustainable hunting practices are urgently needed. Unless there is a step change in efforts to reduce wildlife exploitation to sustainable levels, the region will likely lose most of its iconic species, and many others besides, within the next few years. Aunque la deforestación y la degradación de los bosques han sido consideradas durante largo tiempo como las amenazas más significativas para la biodiversidad tropical, a lo largo del sureste asiático (noreste de India, Indochina, Sondalandia, Filipinas) hay áreas sustanciales de hábitat natural que tienen algunos animales silvestres (>1 kg), excluyendo a algunas especies tolerantes a la caza. Para documentar los impactos regionales de la caza sobre las poblaciones de vertebrados realizamos una revisión extensiva de la literatura, incluyendo artículos de revistas locales y reportes de agencias gubernamentales y no gubernamentales. La evidencia de los múltiples sitios indicó que las poblaciones animales declinaron precipitosamente en la región desde aproximadamente 1980 y que muchas especies ahora están extirpadas de porciones sustanciales de sus extensiones previas. La caza es por mucho la mayor amenaza inmediata para la supervivencia de la mayoría de los vertebrados en peligro de la región. Las causas del exceso reciente de caza incluyen el acceso mejorado a los bosques y a los mercados, tecnología mejorada de caza, productos medicinales derivados de la vida silvestre y los animales silvestres como mascotas. Aunque los cazadores generalmente toman a especies comunes, como los cerdos y las ratas, para su propio consumo, también toman especies raras de manera oportuna y venden la carne excedente y los productos de valor comercial. También existe una extensa caza enfocada en especies de alto valor. En consecuencia, como es practicada actualmente, la caza no puede considerarse sustentable en ningún lugar de la región y en la mayoría de las localidades la aplicación de la legislación de áreas y especies protegidas es débil. El enfoque de la comunidad internacional sobre el mercado transfronterizo falla en abordar la sobreexplotación de la vida silvestre porque la caza y la venta de la carne salvaje son en general un asunto local y la mayoría es consumida en las aldeas, pueblos rurales y ciudades cercanas. Además de una aplicación mejorada, los esfuerzos por involucrar a los cazadores y por manejar las poblaciones de vida silvestre por medio de prácticas de caza sustentable son una necesidad urgente. A menos que haya un cambio de paso en los esfuerzos por reducir la explotación de la vida silvestre a niveles sustentables, la región probablemente pierda la mayoría de sus especies icónicas, además de muchas otras, en el transcurso de los próximos años.

Climate-mediated changes in thermal stress can destabilize animal populations and promote extinction risk. However, risk assessments often focus on changes in mean temperatures and thus ignore the role of temporal variability or structure. Using Earth System Model projections, we show that significant regional differences in the statistical distribution of temperature will emerge over time and give rise to shifts in the mean, variability and persistence of thermal stress. Integrating these trends into mathematical models that simulate the dynamical and cumulative effects of thermal stress on the performance of 38 globally distributed ectotherm species revealed complex regional changes in population stability over the twenty-first century, with temperate species facing higher risk. Yet despite their idiosyncratic effects on stability, projected temperatures universally increased extinction risk. Overall, these results show that the effects of climate change may be more extensive than previously predicted on the basis of the statistical relationship between biological performance and average temperature.The authors project changes in mean thermal stress, as well as its persistence and variability. They show complex impacts on species stability but universal increases in extinction risk, and highlight the need to go beyond average-temperature-based projections of biological performance.

Damage caused by introduced species results from the high population densities and large body sizes that they attain in their new location 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 . Escape from the effects of natural enemies is a frequent explanation given for the success of introduced species 5 , 6 . Because some parasites can reduce host density 7 , 8 , 9 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 and decrease body size 14 , an invader that leaves parasites behind and encounters few new parasites can experience a demographic release and become a pest 4 , 15 . To test whether introduced species are less parasitized, we have compared the parasites of exotic species in their native and introduced ranges, using 26 host species of molluscs, crustaceans, fishes, birds, mammals, amphibians and reptiles. Here we report that the number of parasite species found in native populations is twice that found in exotic populations. In addition, introduced populations are less heavily parasitized (in terms of percentage infected) than are native populations. Reduced parasitization of introduced species has several causes, including reduced probability of the introduction of parasites with exotic species (or early extinction after host establishment), absence of other required hosts in the new location, and the host-specific limitations of native parasites adapting to new hosts.