Connecting paths between juvenile and adult habitats in the Atlantic green turtle using genetics and satellite tracking.

Although it is commonly assumed that female sea turtles always return to the beach they hatched, the pathways they use during the years preceding their first reproduction and their natal origins are most often unknown, as it is the case for juvenile green turtles found in Martinique waters in the Caribbean. Given the oceanic circulation of the Guiana current flowing toward Martinique and the presence of important nesting sites for this species in Suriname and French Guiana, we may assume that a large proportion of the juvenile green turtles found in Martinique are originating from the Suriname-French Guiana beaches. To confirm this hypothesis, we performed mixed stock analysis (MSA) on 40 green turtles sampled in Martinique Island and satellite tracked 31 juvenile green turtles tagged in Martinique to (a) assess their natal origin and (b) identify their destination.

How Social Structure Drives the Population Dynamics of the Common Vampire Bat (Desmodus rotundus, Phyllostomidae).

Social systems are major drivers of population structure and gene flow, with important effects on dynamics and dispersal of associated populations of parasites. Among bats, the common vampire bat (Desmodus rotundus) has likely one of the most complex social structures. Using autosomal and mitochondrial markers on vampires from Mexico, French Guiana, and North Brazil, from both roosting and foraging areas, we observed an isolation by distance at the wider scale and lower but significant differentiation between closer populations (<50 km).

Different pitcher shapes and trapping syndromes explain resource partitioning in Nepenthes species.

Nepenthes pitcher plants display interspecific diversity in pitcher form and diets. This species-rich genus might be a conspicuous candidate for an adaptive radiation. However, the pitcher traits of different species have never been quantified in a comparative study, nor have their possible adaptations to the resources they exploit been tested.

A multilocus phylogeny of the world Sycoecinae fig wasps (Chalcidoidea: Pteromalidae).

The Sycoecinae is one of five chalcid subfamilies of fig wasps that are mostly dependent on Ficus inflorescences for reproduction. Here, we analysed two mitochondrial (COI, Cytb) and four nuclear genes (ITS2, EF-1α, RpL27a, mago nashi) from a worldwide sample of 56 sycoecine species. Various alignment and partitioning strategies were used to test the stability of major clades.