Issues

Summary: Despite historical controversy, ankle push-off primarily contributes to both leg swing and center of mass acceleration during walking. Interpretation of ankle mechanics should abandon an either/or contrast of these mutually consistent effects.

Summary: We describe the physiological challenge of increased production of reactive species confronted by birds during migration, and the interacting roles of antioxidants in protecting birds from oxidative damage.

Summary: Electroantennography allows the recording of the global chemoreceptor response from the antennal appendages, and is developed here for studies on marine shrimp in aqueous conditions.

Summary: New motion analysis software offers greater precision and reproducibility than existing tools for tracking markers in videos, yielding greater sensitivity for measuring 3D motions with XROMM animations.

Summary: Individual energetic state appears to dictate future life-history strategy whereas an artificial stressor impairs growth and reduces survival regardless of life-history strategy.

Summary: Torrent ducks display markedly different physiological and enzymatic specializations at high altitude, characterized by increased mitochondrial respiratory capacity, increased myoglobin content and reorganized enzymatic capacities.

Highlighted Article: Human heel-strike walking increases effective limb length through an anterior shift in the center of pressure, which helps reduce locomotor costs.

Summary: Computed tomography reveals that mandibular force profiles permit highly accurate reconstruction of bite force and feeding behavior in extant and extinct carnivorans.

Summary: The parasitic wasp Cotesia congregata numbs the skin of its host, the caterpillar Manduca sexta, and suppresses host feeding. These manipulations prevent the host from attacking the parasite.

Highlighted Article: Long bristles on the wings of the smallest insects reduce the force required to ‘fling’ the wings apart while still maintaining lift.

Summary: Bed bugs utilize heat to locate and feed on hosts, and show a characteristic increase in the number of responders and decrease in response time with increasing target temperature.

Summary: Leg amputation in fruit flies reveals that during walking inter-leg coordination strength increases with walking speed, thereby facilitating strict coordination during fast locomotion.

Summary: Mitochondrial tolerance to intermittent hypoxia and anoxia correlates with the ability to maintain high activity of mitochondrial proteases and upregulate antioxidants in mollusks.

Summary: Maternal inheritance of metabolic phenotype predominates over mitonuclear mismatch in laboratory-reared hybrid progeny of two grasshopper mouse species that occasionally hybridize in nature.

Summary: Attainment of a steady state in gas exchange upon and following hypoxia and hypercapnia in reptiles may take a prolonged time, especially if blood flow and ventilation rates are low.