5 results match your criteria: "Department of Geography University of Victoria Victoria BC Canada.[Affiliation]"
The concept of ecotypes is complex, partly because of its interdisciplinary nature, but the idea is intrinsically valuable for evolutionary biology and applied conservation. The complex nature of ecotypes has spurred some confusion and inconsistencies in the literature, thereby limiting broader theoretical development and practical application. We provide suggestions for how incorporating genetic analyses can ease confusion and help define ecotypes.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- Parasites play a crucial role in ecosystems but are often ignored; understanding their relationships with hosts, especially in changing climates, is essential for ecological dynamics.
- Studying gray wolves as a model, researchers found that higher wolf density increased the prevalence of certain parasites, while greater prey diversity surprisingly led to lower parasite prevalence.
- Specific parasites like hookworms can harm wolves, particularly young ones; the study indicates that biodiversity might help regulate disease effects on predator populations, suggesting a complex interaction between food variety and parasite management.
Foraging niche variation within a species can contribute to the maintenance of phenotypic diversity. The multiniche model posits that phenotypes occupying different niches can contribute to the maintenance of balanced polymorphisms. Using coastal populations of black bears ( from British Columbia, Canada, we examined potential foraging niche divergence between phenotypes (black and white "Spirit" coat color) and between genotypes (black-coated homozygote and heterozygous).
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEmerging technologies support a new era of applied wildlife research, generating data on scales from individuals to populations. Computer vision methods can process large datasets generated through image-based techniques by automating the detection and identification of species and individuals. With the exception of primates, however, there are no objective visual methods of individual identification for species that lack unique and consistent body markings.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFAim: The influence of humans on large carnivores, including wolves, is a worldwide conservation concern. In addition, human-caused changes in carnivore density and distribution might have impacts on prey and, indirectly, on vegetation. We therefore tested wolf responses to infrastructure related to natural resource development (i.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF