Download or read book Mimicry Aposematism and Related Phenomena written by Stanislav Komárek and published by . This book was released on 2003 with total page 167 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Avoiding Attack written by Graeme D. Ruxton and published by Oxford University Press, USA. This book was released on 2004-10-21 with total page 262 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book discusses the evolution of the mechanisms by which prey avoid attack by their potential predators and questions how such defences are maintained through natural selection. Topics covered include camouflage, warning signals and mimicry.
Download or read book Mimicry Crypsis Masquerade and other Adaptive Resemblances written by Donald L. J. Quicke and published by John Wiley & Sons. This book was released on 2017-08-02 with total page 579 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Deals with all aspects of adaptive resemblance Full colour Covers everything from classic examples of Batesian, Mullerian, aggressive and sexual mimicries through to human behavioural and microbial molecular deceptions Highlights areas where additonal work or specific exeprimentation could be fruitful Includes, animals, plants, micro-organisms and humans
Download or read book Microbial Ecology Research Trends written by Thijs Van Dijk and published by Nova Publishers. This book was released on 2008 with total page 294 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Microbial ecology is the relationship of microorganisms with one another and with their environment. It concerns the three major domains of life -- Eukaryota, Archaea, and Bacteria -- as well as viruses. Microorganisms, by their omnipresence, impact the entire biosphere. They are present in virtually all of our planet's environments, including some of the most extreme, from acidic lakes to the deepest ocean, and from frozen environments to hydrothermal vents. Microbes, especially bacteria, often engage in symbiotic relationships (either positive or negative) with other organisms, and these relationships affect the ecosystem. One example of these fundamental symbioses are chloroplasts, which allow eukaryotes to conduct photosynthesis. Chloroplasts are considered to be endosymbiotic cyanobacteria, a group of bacteria that are thought to be the origins of aerobic photosynthesis. Some theories state that this invention coincides with a major shift in the early earth's atmosphere, from a reducing atmosphere to an oxygen-rich atmosphere. This book presents new and important research in the field.
Download or read book Predation in Organisms written by Ashraf M.T. Elewa and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2007-01-10 with total page 319 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Predation is considered one of the distinct phenomena related to the interrelationships between species on the Earth. In general, predation is widespread not only in wildlife but also in marine environments where big fishes eat small fishes and other organisms of the sea. This book considers predation in organisms and is aimed at the prevention of predation in wildlife and marine environments.
Download or read book Anthocyanins written by Kevin Gould and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2008-12-19 with total page 345 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In recent years there has been an unprecedented expansion of knowledge about anthocyanins pigments. Indeed, the molecular genetic control of anthocyanins biosynthesis is now one of the best understood of all secondary metabolic pathways. There have also been substantial improvements in analytical technology that have led to the discovery of novel anthocyanin compounds. Armed with this knowledge and the tools for genetic engineering, plant breeders are now introducing vibrant new colors into horticultural crops. The food industry has also benefited from the resurgence of interest in anthocyanins. A greater understanding of the chemistry of these pigments has led to improved methods for stabilizing the color of anthocyanins extracts, so that they are more useful as food colorings. Methods for the bulk production of anthocyanins from cell cultures have been optimized for this purpose. Possible benefits to human health from the ingestion of anthocyanin-rich foods have also been a major feature of the recent scientific literature. Anthocyanins are remarkably potent antioxidants, and their ingestion has been postulated to stave off the effects of oxidative stress. These pigments, especially in conjunction with other flavonoids, have been associated with reductions in the incidence and severity of many other non-infectious diseases, including diabetes, cardiovascular disease and certain cancers. An industry is developing around anthocyanins as nutritional supplements. Finally, there has been significant progress in our understanding of the benefits of anthocyanins to plants themselves. Originally considered an extravagance without a purpose, anthocyanins are now implicated in multifarious vital functions. These include the attraction of pollinators and frugivores, aposematic defense from herbivores, and protection from environmental stressors such as strong light, UVB, drought, and free radical attacks. Anthocyanins are evidently highly versatile, and enormously useful to plants. This book covers all aspects of the biosynthesis and function of anthocyanins (and related compounds such as proanthocyanidins) in plants, and their applications in agriculture, food products, and human health. Featured areas include their relevance to: * Plant stress * Flower and fruit color * Human health * Wine quality and health attributes * Food colorants and ingredients * Cell culture production systems * The pastoral sector
Download or read book Insect Evolutionary Ecology written by Royal Entomological Society of London. Symposium and published by CABI. This book was released on 2005 with total page 568 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Insects provide excellent model systems for understanding evolutionary ecology. They are abundant, small, and relatively easy to rear, and these traits facilitate both field and laboratory experiments. This book has been developed from the Royal Entomological Society's 22nd international symposium, held in Reading in 2003. Topics include speciation and adaptation; life history, phenotype plasticity and genetics; sexual selection and reproductive biology; insect-plant interactions; insect-natural enemy interactions; and social insects.
Download or read book Plant Environment Interactions written by František Baluška and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 2009-03-03 with total page 312 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Our image of plants is changing dramatically away from passive entities merely subject to environmental forces and organisms that are designed solely for the accumulation of photosynthate. Plants are revealing themselves to be dynamic and highly sensitive organisms that actively and competitively forage for limited resources, both above and below ground, organisms that accurately gauge their circumstances, use sophisticated cost-benefit analysis, and take clear actions to mitigate and control diverse environmental threats. Moreover, plants are also capable of complex recognition of self and non-self and are territorial in behavior. They are as sophisticated in behavior as animals but their potential has been masked because it operates on time scales many orders of magnitude less than those of animals. Plants are sessile organisms. As such, the only alternative to a rapidly changing environment is rapid adaptation. This book will focus on all these new and exciting aspects of plant biology.
Download or read book Plant Animal Communication written by H. Martin Schaefer and published by OUP Oxford. This book was released on 2011-04-07 with total page 298 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Communication is an essential factor underpinning the interactions between species and the structure of their communities. Plant-animal interactions are particularly diverse due to the complex nature of their mutualistic and antagonistic relationships. However the evolution of communication and the underlying mechanisms responsible remain poorly understood. Plant-Animal Communication is a timely summary of the latest research and ideas on the ecological and evolutionary foundations of communication between plants and animals, including discussions of fundamental concepts such as deception, reliability, and camouflage. It introduces how the sensory world of animals shapes the various modes of communication employed, laying out the basics of vision, scent, acoustic, and gustatory communication. Subsequent chapters discuss how plants communicate in these sensory modes to attract animals to facilitate seed dispersal, pollination, and carnivory, and how they communicate to defend themselves against herbivores. Potential avenues for productive theoretical and empirical research are clearly identified, and suggestions for novel empirical approaches to the study of communication in general are outlined.
Download or read book Biodiversity and Evolution written by Philippe Grandcolas and published by Elsevier. This book was released on 2018-04-17 with total page 286 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Biodiversity and Evolution includes chapters devoted to the evolution and biodiversity of organisms at the molecular level, based on the study of natural collections from the Museum of Natural History. The book starts with an epistemological and historical introduction and ends with a critical overview of the Anthropocene epoch. - Explores the study of natural collections of the Museum of Natural History - Examines evolution and biodiversity at the molecular level - Features an introduction focusing on epistemology and history - Provides a critical overview
Download or read book Behaviour and Evolution written by Marion Hall and published by Springer Science & Business Media. This book was released on 1998-11-25 with total page 322 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This volume examines a variety of aspects of animal behavior and analyzes the underlying relationship between behavior and evolution. Studying behavior draws upon the work of scientists from a number of disciplines, all seeking to answer the question of why an animal behaves in the way it does. The possible answers to this question development, survival value, evolutionary history, and cause-and-effectare explored in this easy-to-read introduction to behavior and evolution.
Download or read book Animal Camouflage written by Martin Stevens and published by Cambridge University Press. This book was released on 2011-07-07 with total page 387 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In the last decade, research on the previously dormant field of camouflage has advanced rapidly, with numerous studies challenging traditional concepts, investigating previously untested theories and incorporating a greater appreciation of the visual and cognitive systems of the observer. Using studies of both real animals and artificial systems, this book synthesises the current state of play in camouflage research and understanding. It introduces the different types of camouflage and how they work, including background matching, disruptive coloration and obliterative shading. It also demonstrates the methodologies used to study them and discusses how camouflage relates to other subjects, particularly with regard to what it can tell us about visual perception. The mixture of primary research and reviews shows students and researchers where the field currently stands and where exciting and important problems remain to be solved, illustrating how the study of camouflage is likely to progress in the future.
Download or read book Defensive anti herbivory Coloration in Land Plants written by Simcha Lev-Yadun and published by Springer. This book was released on 2016-10-20 with total page 373 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: This book presents visual plant defenses (camouflage, mimicry and aposematism via coloration, morphology and even movement) against herbivores. It is mainly an ideological monograph, a manifesto representing my current understanding on defensive plant coloration and related issues. The book is not the final word in anything, but rather the beginning of many things. It aims to establish visual anti-herbivory defense as an integral organ of botany, or plant science as it is commonly called today. I think that like in animals, many types of plant coloration can be explained by selection associated with the sensory/cognitive systems of herbivores and predators to reduce herbivory. It is intended to intrigue and stimulate students of botany/plant science and plant/animal interactions for a very long time. This book is tailored to a readership of biologists and naturalists of all kinds and levels, and more specifically for botanists, ecologists, evolutionists and to those interested in plant/animal interactions. It is written from the point of view of a naturalist, ecologist and evolutionary biologist that I hold, considering natural selection as the main although not the only drive for evolution. According to this perspective, factors such as chance, founder effects, genetic drift and various stochastic processes that may and do influence characters found in specific genotypes, are not comparable in their power and influence to the common outcomes of natural selection, especially manifested when very many species belonging to different plant families, with very different and separate evolutionary histories, arrive at the same adaptation, something that characterizes many of the visual patterns and proposed adaptations described and discussed in this book. Many of the discussed visual defensive mechanisms are aimed at operating before the plants are damaged, i.e., to be their first line of defense. In this respect, I think that the name of the book by Ruxton et al. (2004) "Avoiding Attack" is an excellent phrase for the assembly of the best types of defensive tactics. While discussing anti-herbivory, I do remember, study and teach physiological/developmental aspects of some of the discussed coloration patterns, and I am fully aware of the simultaneous and diverse functions of many plant characters in addition to defense.
Download or read book Acta Universitatis Carolinae written by and published by . This book was released on 2002 with total page 742 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Mimicry and Meaning Structure and Semiotics of Biological Mimicry written by Timo Maran and published by Springer. This book was released on 2017-01-11 with total page 167 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The present book analyses critically the tripartite mimicry model (consisting of the mimic, model and receiver species) and develops semiotic tools for comparative analysis. It is proposed that mimicry has a double structure where sign relations in communication are in constant interplay with ecological relations between species. Multi-constructivism and toolbox-like conceptual methods are advocated for, as these allow taking into account both the participants’ Umwelten as well as cultural meanings related to specific mimicry cases. From biosemiotic viewpoint, mimicry is a sign relation, where deceptively similar messages are perceived, interpreted and acted upon. Focusing on living subjects and their communication opens up new ways to understand mimicry. Such view helps to explain the diversity of mimicry as well as mimicry studies and treat these in a single framework. On a meta-level, a semiotic view allows critical reflection on the use of mimicry concept in modern biology. The author further discusses interpretations of mimicry in contemporary semiotics, analyses mimicry as communicative interaction, relates mimicry to iconic signs and focuses on abstract resemblances in mimicry. Theoretical discussions are illustrated with detailed excursions into practical mimicry cases in nature (brood parasitism, eyespots, myrmecomorphy, etc.). The book concludes with a conviction that mimicry should be treated in a broader semiotic-ecological context as it presumes the existence of ecological codes and other sign conventions in the ecosystem.
Download or read book Agaves of Continental North America written by Howard Scott Gentry and published by University of Arizona Press. This book was released on 2004-02-01 with total page 692 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: New in paperback Spring 2004, this is an indispensable guide to agaves. The uses of agaves are as many as the arts of man have found it convenient to devise. At least two races of man have invaded Agaveland during the last ten to fifteen thousand years, where, with the help of agaves, they contrived several successive civilizations. The region of greatest use development is Mesoamerica. Here the great genetic diversity in a genus rich in use potential came into the hands of several peoples who developed the main agricultural center of the Americas. Perhaps, as the Aztec legends suggest, it was the animals that first showed man the edibility of agave. Evolution in use ranges all the way from the coincidental and spurious, through tool and food-drink subsistence with mystical overlay, to the practical specialties of modem industry and art. The historic period of agave will be outlined here as briefly as that complicated development will allow.
Download or read book Phytochemical Induction by Herbivores written by Douglas W. Tallamy and published by Wiley-Interscience. This book was released on 1991-07-17 with total page 460 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Recent research indicates that plants may be defended by mechanisms activated only after a plant has been challenged by a herbivore. Examines these inducible defenses and provides a framework for future advances in the field. Also serves as a summary and compilation of major studies to date on important areas of plant and insect ecology. While treating both vertebrates and invertebrates it covers mechanisms and models of long- and short-term induction. The impact of inducible phytochemicals on herbivores is extensively discussed as are pesticidal activity of inducible phytochemicals. Covers agricultural implications of inducible phytochemicals.
