Trait Datasets Research Articles

Inferring the patterns and causes of geographic variation in Ephippiger ephippiger (Orthoptera, Tettigoniidae) using geographical information systems (GIS)

Ephippiger ephippiger is a tettigoniid cricket that is fairly widespread in Europe. In southern France, between the Alps and the Pyrenees, it is geographically highly variable for a number of different traits including morphology, allozymes, behaviour and genetic markers. This variation has resulted in considerable confusion over the taxonomic and evolutionary status of forms of the organism. Through the use of geographical information systems (GIS) it has been possible to integrate both trait and environmental data sets from a variety of sources. The GIS is used to interpolate trait and environmental surfaces that are then examined for coincidence. Four general spatial patterns are identified. These can be explained through a combination of secondary contact, environmental adaptation and drift. Covariance between trait and environmental surfaces point to patterns which are primary in origin, whereas other clines probably reflect secondary contact following divergence in refugiae. Multivariate statistics support the validity of a major subdivision identified by GIS. This study is an example of the considerable potential for GIS as an investigative tool in evolutionary studies.

Inferring the patterns and causes of geographic variation in Ephippiger ephippiger (Orthoptera, Tettigoniidae) using geographical information systems (GIS)

Ephippiger ephippiger is a tcltigoniid cricket that is fairly widespread in Europe. In southern France, between the Alps and the Pyrenees, it is geographically highly variable lor a number of different traits including morphology, allozymcs, behaviour and genetic markers. This variation has resulted in considerable confusion over the taxonomic and evolutionary status of forms of the organism. Through the use of geographical information systems (GIS) it has been possible to integrate both trait and environmental data sets from a variety of sources. The GIS is used to interpolate trait and environmental surfaces that are then examined for coincidence. Four general spatial patterns are identified. These can be explained through a combination of secondary contact, environmental adaptation and drift. Covariance between trait and environmental surfaces point to patterns which are primary in origin, whereas other dines probably reflect secondary contact following divergence in rcfugiae. Multivariate statistics support the validity of a major subdivision identified by GIS. This study is an example of the considerable potential for GIS as an investigative tool in evolutionary studies.

Comparison of Molecular Marker and Morphological Data to Determine Minimum Distance among Tomato Cultivars

Precise cultivar descriptions are necessary to support Plant Variety Protection and utility applications for patent protection. However, accurate discrimination among cultivars is contingent upon the dependability of the method used to delineate lines. The efficiency and reliability of Amplified Fragment Length Polymorphisms (AFLPs), Random Amplified Polymorphic DNAs (RAPDs), microsatellite polymorphisms, and phenotypic traits were studied in order to determine a method's ability to accurately predict pedigree relationships among a set of 20 California processing tomato cultivars. All molecular marker and phenotypic trait data sets were independently produced using identical cultivar seed sources. Data was reduced to a genetic distance measure and presented as a multidimensional scaling (MDS) plot. Principal component analysis using the scored quantitative phenotypic traits was computed and is compared to molecular marker data results. Experimental error, sampling variance, and independence of scored bands for each molecular marker technique are presented. These estimates should assist breeders to determine a sufficient level of characterization, determine a minimum distance considered to be unique, and defend pedigree relationships.

Irritable bowel syndrome as a cause of chronic pain in women attending a gynaecology clinic.

<h3>Abstract</h3> Many species gain anti-predator benefits by combining gregarious behavior with warning coloration, yet there is debate over which trait evolves first, and which is the secondary adaptive enhancement. Body size can also influence how predators receive aposematic signals, and potentially constrain the evolution of gregarious behavior. To our knowledge, the causative links between the evolution of gregariousness, aposematism and larger body sizes have not been fully resolved. Here, using the most recently resolved butterfly phylogeny and an extensive new dataset of larval traits, we reveal the evolutionary interactions between important traits linked to larval gregariousness. We show that larval gregariousness has arisen many times across the butterflies, and aposematism is a likely prerequisite for gregariousness to evolve. We also find that body size may be an important factor for determining the coloration of solitary, but not gregarious larvae. Additionally, by exposing artificial ‘larvae’ to wild avian predation, we show that undefended, cryptic ‘larvae’ are heavily predated when aggregated but benefit from solitariness, whereas the reverse is true for aposematic prey. Our data reinforce the importance of aposematism for gregarious larval survival, whilst identifying new questions about the roles of body size and toxicity in the evolution of grouping behavior.