About 50% of all animal species are considered parasites. The linkage of species diversity to a parasitic lifestyle is especially evident in the insect order Hymenoptera. However, fossil evidence for host-parasitoid interactions is extremely rare, rendering hypotheses on the evolution of parasitism assumptive. Here, using high-throughput synchrotron X-ray microtomography, we examine 1510 phosphatized fly pupae from the Paleogene of France and identify 55 parasitation events by four wasp species, providing morphological and ecological data. All species developed as solitary endoparasitoids inside their hosts and exhibit different morphological adaptations for exploiting the same hosts in one habitat. Our results allow systematic and ecological placement of four distinct endoparasitoids in the Paleogene and highlight the need to investigate ecological data preserved in the fossil record.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1038/s41467-018-05654-y | DOI Listing |
Monte Carlo Methods Appl
December 2024
Computer Languages and Systems Software Group, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, California, USA.
Correlation coefficients and linear regression values computed from group averages can differ from correlation coefficients and linear regression values computed using individual scores. This observation known as the ecological fallacy often assumes that all the individual scores are available from a population. In many situations, one must use a sample from the larger population.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFDigit Health
January 2025
Department of Psychiatry and Psychotherapy, Central Institute of Mental Health, Medical Faculty Mannheim/Heidelberg University, Mannheim, Germany.
Background: Advancing evidence-based, tailored interventions for substance use disorders (SUDs) requires understanding temporal directionality while upholding ecological validity. Previous studies identified loneliness and craving as pivotal factors associated with alcohol consumption, yet the precise directionality of these relationships remains ambiguous.
Objective: This study aims to establish a smartphone-based real-life intervention platform that integrates momentary assessment and intervention into everyday life.
Front Plant Sci
January 2025
State Key Laboratory of Herbage Improvement and Grassland Agro-Ecosystems, Key Laboratory of Grassland Livestock Industry Innovation, Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs, College of Pastoral Agriculture Science and Technology, Lanzhou University, Lanzhou, China.
The natural grassland in China is facing increasingly serious degradation. L., as an important native alpine grass, is widely used in the restoration and improvement of natural grassland.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHeliyon
January 2025
Department of Environment, Mazandaran Provincial Office, Mazandaran, Iran.
Ranger patrols are essential for biodiversity conservation, particularly in protected areas where they help mitigate poaching of large mammals. Effective patrols reduce poaching and support higher population densities of large mammals. This study investigates the impact of ranger patrols on large mammal sightings in the Central Alborz Protected Area (CAPA), northern Iran, a crucial wildlife corridor with UNESCO-listed Hyrcanian forests and high-altitude grasslands.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEcol Evol
January 2025
Department of Zoology, Fisheries, Hydrobiology and Apiculture, Faculty of Agronomy Mendel University in Brno Brno Czech Republic.
This study evaluates the response of ground beetle (Coleoptera: Carabidae) assemblage to forest management practices by integrating species composition, body traits, wing morphology and developmental instability. Traditional approaches that rely on averaged identity-based descriptors often overlook phenotypic plasticity and functional trait variability, potentially masking species-specific responses to environmental changes. To address this, we applied a three-layered analytical approach to address this gap, utilising ground beetle occurrence and morphological trait data from Podyjí National Park, Czech Republic.
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