Issues
-
Cover image
Cover Image
Cover: Silk cocoons display a great visual diversity of morphologies. However, equally diverse are their unique biochemical fingerprints. Analysis of infrared spectra by Boulet-Audet et al. (pp. 3138-3149) revealed that cocoon biochemical diversity agrees well with lepidopteran taxonomy built upon unrelated protein-coding nuclear genes. This suggests that silk cocoons can provide a new route to map the phylogenetic diversity found in these species. Photo credit: Oxford Silk Group.
- PDF Icon PDF LinkTable of contents
- PDF Icon PDF LinkIssue info
INSIDE JEB
OUTSIDE JEB
SHORT COMMUNICATION
Hypercapnia and low pH induce neuroepithelial cell proliferation and emersion behaviour in the amphibious fish Kryptolebias marmoratus
Summary: Amphibious fish may use oxygen-sensing neuroepithelial cells to sense and avoid high CO2 or low pH in the water.
RESEARCH ARTICLES
Will jumping snails prevail? Influence of near-future CO2, temperature and hypoxia on respiratory performance in the tropical conch Gibberulus gibberulus gibbosus
Highlighted Article: The respiratory capacity of the humpbacked conch, a jumping snail, appears sufficient not only for today's needs but also for those in a warmer acidified future.
Focal enhancement of the skeleton to exercise correlates with responsivity of bone marrow mesenchymal stem cells rather than peak external forces
Summary: The ability of the progenitor population to differentiate toward bone-forming cells may be a better correlate to bone structural adaptation than external forces generated by exercise.
How do treadmill speed and terrain visibility influence neuromuscular control of guinea fowl locomotion?
Summary: Guinea fowl (Numida meleagris) show speed-dependent shifts in neuromuscular control during obstacle negotiation, characterized by a greater reliance on anticipatory modulation and stride-to-stride neural adjustments at slow speed, shifting towards feedforward activation and intrinsic mechanical stability at high speed.
Physiological, pharmacological and behavioral evidence for a TRPA1 channel that can elicit defensive responses in the medicinal leech
Summary: Physiological and behavioral evidence indicates the presence of a TRPA1-like channel in the medicinal leech Hirudo verbana that responds to both reactive electrophiles and moderate cold.
Lipid composition and molecular interactions change with depth in the avian stratum corneum to regulate cutaneous water loss
Highlighted Article: Lipid composition changes with depth in the avian skin, but these changes vary by season. This seasonal variation affects rates of cutaneous water loss.
A novel acoustic-vibratory multimodal duet
Summary: Paleotropical false-leaf bushcrickets exhibit a novel multimodal duet with alternating male acoustic calls and female tremulation signals; this functions in mate localization and may have evolved under predator pressure.
Forelimb kinematics during hopping and landing in toads
Summary: Toads alter forelimb kinematics in a distance-dependent manner and achieve more extended elbow configurations at impact in longer hops.
Molecular and sensory mechanisms to mitigate sunlight-induced DNA damage in treefrog tadpoles
Highlighted Article: A UV-avoidance sensory mechanism complements the low DNA repair efficiency of treefrog tadpoles to mitigate the genotoxic effects of solar UV radiation.
Physiological responses of ectotherms to daily temperature variation
Summary: When developing ectotherms cannot reduce the costs of daily temperature fluctuations through phenotypic plasticity, effects on the rate of development may determine fitness consequences.
Building a dishonest signal: the functional basis of unreliable signals of strength in males of the two-toned fiddler crab, Uca vomeris
Summary: The frequencies of reliable and unreliable signals of strength in Uca vomeris are influenced by the structural and physiological mechanisms behind force production in the major claw.
Effects of insulin and its related signaling pathways on lipid metabolism in the yellow catfish Pelteobagrus fulvidraco
Summary: Insulin plays a regulatory role in hepatic metabolism in yellow catfish, increasing lipid and triglyceride accumulation. These changes are mediated by the modulation of PPARα, PPARγ and PI3K signaling pathways.
Amazon river dolphins (Inia geoffrensis) use a high-frequency short-range biosonar
Highlighted Article: Amazon river dolphins inhabit an acoustically complex habitat, where they employ a short-range biosonar with source parameters not predictable from body size alone, suggesting that habitat is an important evolutionary co-driver of toothed whale biosonar.
Grizzly bear (Ursus arctos horribilis) locomotion: gaits and ground reaction forces
Summary: Grizzly bear locomotion has some similarities to that of previously studied animals, but they do not appear to trot and produce relatively high mediolateral forces.
Circadian modulation of learning ability in a disease vector insect, Rhodnius prolixus
Summary: Kissing bugs learn well during the night but not during the day, as their ability to acquire information – but not to retrieve it – is modulated by time.
Insects modify their behaviour depending on the feedback sensor used when walking on a trackball in virtual reality
Summary: Honeybees change their walking behaviour to improve fixation performance, depending on the sensor that is used to measure their behaviour in closed-loop virtual reality.
Double-network gels and the toughness of terrestrial slug glue
Summary: The gel-based glue of Arion subfuscus combines two separate networks: a deformable proteoglycan network and a cross-linked protein network. These work together to achieve far greater toughness than each can produce separately.
Identification and classification of silks using infrared spectroscopy
Summary: FTIR analysis performed on unspun silks and cocoons from 35 different species provides information regarding the biochemical diversity and evolution of this group of materials.
Timing matters: tuning the mechanics of a muscle–tendon unit by adjusting stimulation phase during cyclic contractions
Summary: During cyclic contractions of a muscle–tendon unit, the timing of muscle stimulation onset determines whether the muscle acts like a force producing strut, energy generating motor or energy absorbing brake.
2023 JEB Outstanding Paper Prize shortlist and winner
The JEB Editors are delighted to announce the shortlisted authors for the 2023 JEB Outstanding Paper Prize. Read the winning paper - Tiny spies: mosquito antennae are sensitive sensors for eavesdropping on frog calls - by Hoover Pantoja-Sanchez and Brian Leavell from Ximena Bernal's lab at Purdue University, USA.
JEB Science Communication Workshop for ECRs
If you’re an early-career researcher interested in science communication and are attending the SEB Annual Conference in Prague this summer, come a day early and join the JEB Editors at a sci comm workshop to learn the key writing skills needed to promote your research to a broad audience beyond your peers (1 July at 14.30-17.30). Places are limited to 24 attendees, and applicants should apply through the SEB registration page by 30 April 2024.
Bridging the gap between controlled conditions and natural habitats in understanding behaviour
Novel technologies enable behavioural experiments with non-model species, in naturalistic habitats and with underexplored behaviours. In their Commentary, Scholz and colleagues discuss how to obtain a deeper understanding of the natural ecology and lifestyle of study animals.
Beluga metabolic measures could help save species
To help save animals from extinction, it’s important to understand what each species needs to survive. This led Jason John et al. to measure the metabolic rates of captive belugas to develop a ‘fish calculator’ showing that the whales need to eat ~23 salmon per day.
ECR Workshop on Positive Peer Review
Are you an ECR looking for tips on how to write concise, astute and useful manuscript reviews? If so, join the JEB Editors at a 2-hour JEB-sponsored Workshop on Positive Peer Review at the Canadian Society of Zoologists annual meeting in Moncton on 9 May 2024 at 13.00-15.00. There are 25 spaces for ECRs and selection is first come, first serve. To sign up, check the ECR Workshop box when you register for the CSZ meeting.