Propagation dynamics of reaction-diffusion systems in sugar beet agro-ecosystems.

We formulate and study a one–dimensional single–species diffusive–delay population model. The time delay is the time taken from birth to maturity. Without diffusion, the delay differential model extends the well–known logistic differential equation by allowing delayed constant birth processes and instantaneous quadratically regulated death processes. This delayed model is known to have simple global dynamics similar to that of the logistic equation. Through the use of a sub/supersolution pair method, we show that the diffusive delay model continues to generate simple global dynamics. This has the important biological implication that quadratically regulated death processes dramatically simplify the growth dynamics. We also consider the possibility of travelling wavefront solutions of the scalar equation for the mature population, connecting the zero solution of that equation with the positive steady state. Our main finding here is that our fronts appear to be all monotone, regardless of the size of the delay. This is in sharp contrast to the frequently reported findings that delay causes a loss of monotonicity, with the front developing a prominent hump in some other delay models.

Vector-borne diseases, such as chikungunya, dengue, malaria, West Nile virus, yellow fever and Zika, pose a major global public health problem worldwide. In this paper we investigate the propagation dynamics of diffusive vector-borne disease models in the whole space, which characterize the spatial expansion of the infected hosts and infected vectors. Due to the lack of monotonicity, the comparison principle cannot be applied directly to this system. We determine the spreading speed and minimal wave speed when the basic reproduction number of the corresponding kinetic system is larger than one. The spreading speed is mainly estimated by the uniform persistence argument and generalized principal eigenvalue. We also show that solutions converge locally uniformly to the positive equilibrium by employing two auxiliary monotone systems. Moreover, it is proven that the spreading speed is the minimal wave speed of travelling wave solutions. In particular, the uniqueness and monotonicity of travelling waves are obtained. When the basic reproduction number of the corresponding kinetic system is not larger than one, it is shown that solutions approach to the disease-free equilibrium uniformly and there is no travelling wave solutions. Finally, numerical simulations are presented to illustrate the analytical results.

Spatial dynamics for a non-quasi-monotone reaction-diffusion system with delay and quiescent stage

Shoals of 3, 5, 7, 10, 15, and 20 bluntnose minnows,Pimephales notatus, were allowed to forage in the absence and presence of a fish predator, which was separated from the shoal by a clear plexiglass partition. A typical dilution effect was observed in that individual fish in larger shoals were approached less frequently by the predator. In the absence of a predator, foraging latency decreased significantly and the rate of foraging increased with increasing shoal size. Foraging latency for each shoal size tended to increase in the presence of a predator and foraging rate decreased, significantly for shoals of 7, 15, and 20 fish. Members of larger shoals were safer and enjoyed a greater level of food consumption, perhaps due to decreased individual vigilance for predators and social facilitation. However, foraging effort decreased when a predator was present, as more time was allocated to predator avoidance.

Human-induced eutrophication has increased offspring production in a population of threespine sticklebackGasterosteus aculeatusin the Baltic Sea. Here, we experimentally investigated the effects of an increased density of juveniles on behaviours that influence survival and dispersal, and, hence, population growth—habitat choice, risk taking, and foraging rate. Juveniles were allowed to choose between two habitats that differed in structural complexity, in the absence and presence of predators and conspecific juveniles. In the absence of predators or conspecifics, juveniles preferred the more complex habitat. The preference was further enhanced in the presence of a natural predator, a perchPerca fluviatilis(behind a transparent Plexiglas wall). However, an increased density of conspecifics relaxed the predator-enhanced preference for the complex habitat and increased the use of the open, more predator-exposed habitat. Foraging rate was reduced under increased perceived predation risk. These results suggest that density-dependent behaviours can cause individuals to choose suboptimal habitats where predation risk is high and foraging rate low. This could contribute to the regulation of population growth in eutrophicated areas where offspring production is high.

The objective of the present study was to analyse the movement, feeding and case-building behaviours of Phylloicus in the presence and absence of a likely decapod predator, Aegla longirostri. We used aquaria divided by a perforated acrylic plate, with one side containing a Phylloicus and the other containing A. longirostri. Movement was quantified through the time spent in active movement, feeding was quantified through the amount of consumed leaves and the case-building was assessed by comparing the number of leaf discs selected of each plant species. The Phylloicus movement activity was affected by A. longirostri, being higher in the predator absence than in its presence. The caddisfly feeding behaviour was not affected by the presence of the crab. Phylloicus was selective in the choice of plant species for case-building; in the presence of the predator, harder discs were more often employed, whereas softer and less resistant discs were chosen in the absence of the predator. The anti-predator responses of caddisfly demonstrated that they are able to detect the presence of crabs and modify their activities, thereby increasing their chances of survival.

Four experiments were serially carried out conducted to study foraging activity in the freshwater gastropod Lymnaea stagnalis in the absence and presence of predators (crayfish or fish) under daylight and in the dark. The snails were either parasitized by digenean trematodes (Diplostomum pseudospathaceum or Plagiorchis elegans) or remained unparasitized. The snails had an evident circadian foraging rhythm: they preferred diurnal foraging notwithstanding the predators and parasites. However, the snail's parasite status and the predation risk had an interaction effect on the number of feeding events per snail individual so that especially the snails parasitized by D. pseudospathaceum were more active in the presence of a fish predator than in the absence of predators. Some of the snails responded to cues from a crayfish predator by crawling out of the water. The results suggest that D. pseudospathaceum may be capable of manipulating the behaviour of its first intermediate snail host in ways that enhance its success of transmission to the parasite's second intermediate fish host. The results also indicate that the effects of biotic stressors, such as predation risk and parasitism, on the foraging pattern in the snails L. stagnalis may be interactive and highly specialized rather than generalized.

Size-dependent interactions in salt marsh fish (Fundulus heteroclitus Linnaeus) and shrimp (Palaemonetes pugio Holthuis)

We investigated three potential mechanisms—size-dependent overwinter energy loss, size-specific predation, and size-dependent predator-induced metabolic costs—to determine the role of body size and predators on the overwinter survival and energy reserves of young-of-the-year walleyes Stizostedion vitreum. Walleyes were reared in outdoor hatchery ponds in Westport, Ontario, for three overwinter periods (1997-1998, 1998-1999, 1999-2000) in the presence or absence of predators (burbot Lota lota or adult walleyes). Other young-of-the-year fishes were provided as potential prey items. We predicted that (1) smaller individuals of a young-of-the-year walleye cohort would have lower prewinter energy stocks and would deplete them at a higher rate; (2) no size-dependent overwinter survival would occur in walleyes reared without predators; and (3) physiological stress, in combination with size-selective predation on smaller individuals, would lead to size-dependent overwinter mortality in young of the year reared with predators. Prediction 1 was not supported by lipid, protein, or specific-energy content data; indeed, smaller walleyes actually gained energy over the winter, whereas larger walleyes lost energy. Prediction 2 was supported but prediction 3 was not, as no significant survival differences were observed between four size-class quartiles in any pond or year. However, young-of-the-year walleyes reared over winter in the presence of predators lost significantly more weight and energy and had significantly lower lipid concentrations at the end of winter than did those reared in the absence of predators. Although no differences in overwinter survivorship were detected between young-of-the-year walleyes reared in predator and predator-free ponds, the presence of significant predator-induced energetic costs in the absence of size-selective mortality suggests that the size-selective mortality observed in some natural walleye populations is the direct effect of the presence of predators.

Much has been studied on the spreading speed and traveling wave solutions for cooperative reaction–diffusion systems. In this paper, we shall establish the spreading speed for a large class of non-cooperative reaction–diffusion systems and characterize the spreading speed as the slowest speed of a family of non-constant traveling wave solutions. Our results are applied to a partially cooperative system describing interactions between ungulates and grass.

Juvenile Gobius niger avoids seagrass in the presence and uncertain absence of seagrass-inhabiting predators

The occurrence and abundance of mosquito populations may be associated with the abundance of predators. We examined the relationship between aquatic predators and populations of mosquitoes in animal water troughs in Waikanae, New Zealand. We also investigated the effects of water volume and environmental factors (temperature, rainfall, wind speed, humidity, and pressure) in order to further understand factors influencing mosquito and predator populations. Logistic regression indicated that the presence or absence of mosquitoes was primarily affected by three factors: predator abundance, week of observation, and water volume. Pearson's correlation indicated that the presence of predators had a positive correlation with water volume (r² = 0.176, p< 0.05). Otherwise, the presence of mosquito larvae in water troughs was negatively correlated with water volume (r² =-0.159, p=0.022) and wind speed (r² =0.142, p=0.041). We established a translocation experiment in which predators or mosquitoes were moved between troughs in order to examine the prey survival rate after exposure to Anisops wakefieldi predators. The survival rate of mosquitoes was not significantly different, between 0-0.1%, irrespective of the number of predators translocated (1-9) or the initial mosquito density (20-70 larvae). Our results suggested that A. wakefieldi predators may have the potential to be a promising biological control tool for the control of mosquito populations by altering mosquito population dynamics.

Traveling wave solutions in partially degenerate cooperative reaction–diffusion systems

Immature stages of Culex annulirostris Skuse from Ross River Dam were reared in the laboratory at constant temperatures (18.0, 24.5, 28.5 and 35.0 degrees C) and in the field in the presence or absence of predators. In the laboratory, survival from first instar to adult emergence increased from 5.5% at 18 degrees C to 96.5% at 35 degrees C. In the field predators increased mortality by almost 60%. Adult wing length increased inversely with constant temperature except at 18 degrees C. In the field the largest adults were produced in the presence of predators. The developmental threshold temperature (to) and thermal constant (K) were estimated from laboratory data to be 13.7 degrees C and 129.3 DD, respectively. K determined in the laboratory did not differ significantly from that required in the field (132.8 and 153.5 DD above 13.7 degrees C in the presence and absence of predators). Numbers of immature Cx. annulirostris at four sites in the dam rose to a peak after four or five generations and then rapidly declined. Overall survival of immatures was very low but was significantly higher at the one site where Melaleucas also occurred. Age-specific survival was highest in the first instar. Estimated survival from hatching to eclosion ranged from 4/1,000 to 185/1,000. Mortality appeared to be density independent and was attributed mostly to predation.

BackgroundJapanese encephalitis (JE) is a zoonosis in Southeast Asia vectored by mosquitoes infected with the Japanese encephalitis virus (JEV). Japanese encephalitis is considered an emerging exotic infectious disease with potential for introduction in currently JEV-free countries. Pigs and ardeid birds are reservoir hosts and play a major role on the transmission dynamics of the disease. The objective of the study was to quantitatively summarize the proportion of JEV infection in vectors and vertebrate hosts from data pertaining to observational studies obtained in a systematic review of the literature on vector and host competence for JEV, using meta-analyses.MethodsData gathered in this study pertained to three outcomes: proportion of JEV infection in vectors, proportion of JEV infection in vertebrate hosts, and minimum infection rate (MIR) in vectors. Random-effects subgroup meta-analysis models were fitted by species (mosquito or vertebrate host species) to estimate pooled summary measures, as well as to compute the variance between studies. Meta-regression models were fitted to assess the association between different predictors and the outcomes of interest and to identify sources of heterogeneity among studies. Predictors included in all models were mosquito/vertebrate host species, diagnostic methods, mosquito capture methods, season, country/region, age category, and number of mosquitos per pool.ResultsMosquito species, diagnostic method, country, and capture method represented important sources of heterogeneity associated with the proportion of JEV infection; host species and region were considered sources of heterogeneity associated with the proportion of JEV infection in hosts; and diagnostic and mosquito capture methods were deemed important contributors of heterogeneity for the MIR outcome.ConclusionsOur findings provide reference pooled summary estimates of vector competence for JEV for some mosquito species, as well as of sources of variability for these outcomes. Moreover, this work provides useful guidelines when interpreting vector and host infection proportions or prevalence from observational studies, and contributes to further our understanding of vector and vertebrate host competence for JEV, elucidating information on the relative importance of vectors and hosts on JEV introduction and transmission.