scholarly journals A fruitful endeavor: scent cues and echolocation behavior used by Carollia castanea to find fruit

2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Leith B. Leiser-Miller ◽  
Zofia A. Kaliszewska ◽  
M. Elise Lauterbur ◽  
Brianna Mann ◽  
Jeffrey A. Riffell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Food Selection ◽  
Food Resource ◽  
Sensory System ◽  
Behavioral Flexibility ◽  
Relative Importance ◽  
Fruit Bats ◽  
Ripe Fruit ◽  
Behavioral Experiments ◽  
Foraging Decisions ◽  
Sensory Adaptations

ABSTRACTFrugivores have evolved sensory and behavioral adaptations that allow them to find ripe fruit effectively, but the relative importance of different senses in varying foraging scenarios is poorly known. Within Neotropical ecosystems, short-tailed fruit bats (Carollia: Phyllostomidae) are abundant nocturnal frugivores, relying primarily on plants of the genus Piper as a food resource. Previous research has demonstrated Carollia employ olfaction and echolocation to locate Piper fruit, but it is unknown how their sensory use and foraging decisions are influenced by the complex diversity of chemical cues that fruiting plants produce. Using wild C. castanea and their preferred food, Piper scintillans, we conducted behavioral experiments to test two main hypotheses: (1) foraging decisions in C. castanea are primarily driven by ripe fruit scent and secondarily by vegetation scent, and (2) C. castanea re-weight their sensory inputs to account for available environmental cues, such that bats rely more heavily on echolocation in the absence of adequate scent cues. Our results suggest that C. castanea requires olfactory information and relies almost exclusively on ripe fruit scent to make foraging attempts. Ripe fruit scent is chemically distinct from vegetation scent in P. scintillans, with a greater abundance of β-caryophyllene, germacrene D and β-elemene, and a few unique compounds. Although variation in echolocation call parameters was independent of scent cue presence, bats emitted longer and more frequent echolocation calls in trials where no fruit scent was present. Altogether, these results highlight the adaptations, plasticity, and potential constraints in the sensory system of neotropical fruit bats.SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENTLittle is known about the relative importance of different senses and which plant cues are most important for fruit location by frugivores. We conducted behavioral experiments on short-tailed fruit bats (Carollia castanea), which use a combination of olfaction and echolocation to find ripe fruit, and their preferred food source (Piper scintillans) to test (1) which plant scent cues drive food selection and (2) if bats alter their echolocation behaviors based on which scent cues are present. We find that C. castanea rely almost exclusively on ripe fruit scent to forage, and echolocate more frequently when fruit scent is absent. Ripe fruit scent is chemically different from vegetation scent in P. scintillans, potentially providing a clear signal of food availability to mutualistic bats. These results highlight the sensory adaptations and behavioral flexibility of fruit bats as they navigate the cues provided by fruiting plants.

scholarly journals A Fruitful Endeavor: Scent Cues and Echolocation Behavior Used by Carollia castanea to Find Fruit

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
L B Leiser-Miller ◽  
Z A Kaliszewska ◽  
M E Lauterbur ◽  
Brianna Mann ◽  
J A Riffell ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Chemical Cues ◽  
Food Resource ◽  
Sensory System ◽  
Environmental Cues ◽  
Fruit Bats ◽  
Ripe Fruit ◽  
Behavioral Experiments ◽  
Behavioral Adaptations ◽  
Foraging Decisions ◽  
Free Ranging

Synopsis Frugivores have evolved sensory and behavioral adaptations that allow them to find ripe fruit effectively, but the relative importance of different senses in varying foraging scenarios is still poorly understood. Within Neotropical ecosystems, short-tailed fruit bats (Carollia: Phyllostomidae) are abundant nocturnal frugivores that rely primarily on Piper fruits as a food resource. Previous research has demonstrated that Carollia employs olfaction and echolocation to locate Piper fruit, but it is unknown how their sensory use and foraging decisions are influenced by the complex diversity of chemical cues that fruiting plants produce. Using free-ranging C. castanea and their preferred food, Piper sancti-felicis, we conducted behavioral experiments to test two main hypotheses: (1) foraging decisions in C. castanea are primarily driven by ripe fruit scent and secondarily by vegetation scent, and (2) C. castanea re-weights their sensory inputs to account for available environmental cues, with bats relying more heavily on echolocation in the absence of adequate scent cues. Our results suggest that C. castanea requires olfactory information and relies almost exclusively on ripe fruit scent to make foraging attempts. Piper sancti-felicis ripe fruit scent is chemically distinct from vegetation scent; it is dominated by 2-heptanol, which is absent from vegetation scent, and has a greater abundance of β-caryophyllene, β-ocimene, γ-elemene, and α-cubebene. Although variation in echolocation call parameters was independent of scent cue presence, bats emitted longer and more frequent echolocation calls in trials where fruit scent was absent. Altogether, these results highlight the adaptations and plasticity of the sensory system in neotropical fruit bats.

Above-ground biomass estimation for a shrubby mistletoe in an Amazonian savanna

2019 ◽  
Vol 36 (1) ◽  
pp. 6-12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sarah Rosane M. C. Fadini ◽  
Reinaldo I. Barbosa ◽  
Rafael Rode ◽  
Viviane Corrêa ◽  
Rodrigo F. Fadini
Keyword(s):  
Life Form ◽  
Food Resource ◽  
Keystone Species ◽  
Host Size ◽  
Biomass Estimation ◽  
Relative Importance ◽  
Above Ground Biomass ◽  
Ground Biomass ◽  
Relative Contribution ◽  
Poor Predictor

AbstractMistletoes are considered keystone species on woodlands and savannas worldwide, providing a food resource for a diversified fauna, as well as a nutrient-enriched litter. Infections can be large (∼1–3 m) and, in some parts of the Amazonian savannas, parasitize up to 70% of hosts locally. Despite these facts, biomass of mistletoes is rarely investigated. Here we constructed allometric models to predict the biomass stock of the shrubby mistletoe Psittacanthus plagiophyllus in an Amazonian savanna. In addition, we determined whether host size could be used as a proxy for mistletoe biomass. Finally, we compared the biomass of mistletoes with that of trees, to evaluate their relative importance. We have shown that: (1) biomass of leaves (46.1% ± 13.5%) are as important as of stems (47.8% ± 13.5%), and relative contribution of stems increases as plant grows; (2) the model including width, breadth and vertical depth was the best (SE = 0.39, R2 = 0.9) for predicting individual mistletoe biomass; (3) mistletoe load and biomass per host had a positive, but weak (R2 = 0.11 and 0.09, respectively), relationship with host size, and thus such host information is a poor predictor of mistletoe biomass; and (4) in comparison with trees, mistletoes constituted less than 0.15% (0.5–22 kg ha−1) of the total above-ground biomass, suggesting that this life-form is irrelevant to the local biomass stock despite its unequivocal biological importance.

Vertical stratification of fruit bats (Pteropodidae) in lowland dipterocarp rainforest in Malaysia

1994 ◽  
Vol 10 (4) ◽  
pp. 523-530 ◽  
Author(s):  
Charles M. Francis
Keyword(s):  
Seed Dispersal ◽  
Forest Regeneration ◽  
Food Selection ◽  
Ground Level ◽  
Peninsular Malaysia ◽  
Forest Trees ◽  
Fruit Bats ◽  
Lowland Rainforest ◽  
Capture Rates ◽  
Foraging Ranges

ABSTRACTMistnets were set at ground level and 11–30 m above ground in lowland rainforest at Kuala Lompat in peninsular Malaysia, and Sepilok in Sabah, to compare the abundance of fruit bats in the subcanopy and at ground level. Capture rates in the subcanopy were up to 100 times greater than at ground level, averaging 3–7 bats per net-night. Species diversity was higher in the subcanopy than forest understorey. Two species that were frequently captured in the subcanopy,Megaerops wetmoreiandDyacopterus spadiceus, were previously thought to be rare. The abundance of Old World fruit bats in the subcanopy indicates that their roles in pollination and seed dispersal of Malaysian forest trees may be greater than previously recognized. Further research on foraging ranges, food selection and roosting habits is required to determine the overall importance of fruit bats in forest regeneration through seed dispersal, and the adequacy of existing reserves for their conservation.

scholarly journals Flies Avoid Current Atmospheric CO2 Concentrations

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Habibe K. Üçpunar ◽  
Ilona C. Grunwald Kadow
Keyword(s):  
18Th Century ◽  
Sensory System ◽  
Olfactory Receptors ◽  
Food Sources ◽  
Behavioral Experiments ◽  
Electrophysiological Recordings ◽  
Vinegar Fly ◽  
Key Odorants ◽  
Receptor Neurons ◽  
Atmospheric Co2 Concentrations

CO2 differs from most other odors by being ubiquitously present in the air animals inhale. CO2 levels of the atmosphere, however, are subject to change. Depending on the landscape, temperature, and time of the year, CO2 levels can change even on shortest time scales. In addition, since the 18th century the CO2 baseline keeps increasing due to the intensive fossil fuel usage. However, we do not know whether this change is significant for animals, and if yes whether and how animals adapt to this change. Most insects possess olfactory receptors to detect the gaseous molecule, and CO2 is one of the key odorants for insects such as the vinegar fly Drosophila melanogaster to find food sources and to warn con-specifics. So far, CO2 and its sensory system have been studied in the context of rotting fruit and other CO2-emitting sources to investigate flies’ response to significantly elevated levels of CO2. However, it has not been addressed whether flies detect and potentially react to atmospheric levels of CO2. By using behavioral experiments, here we show that flies can detect atmospheric CO2 concentrations and, if given the choice, prefer air with sub-atmospheric levels of the molecule. Blocking the synaptic release from CO2 receptor neurons abolishes this choice. Based on electrophysiological recordings, we hypothesize that CO2 receptors, similar to ambient temperature receptors, actively sample environmental CO2 concentrations close to atmospheric levels. Based on recent findings and our data, we hypothesize that Gr-dependent CO2 receptors do not primarily serve as a cue detector to find food sources or avoid danger, instead they function as sensors for preferred environmental conditions.

scholarly journals Present status of strawberry fruit rot diseases in New Zealand

2005 ◽  
Vol 58 ◽  
pp. 74-79 ◽  
Author(s):  
O.E. Timudo-Torrevilla ◽  
K.R. Everett ◽  
N.W. Waipara ◽  
K.S.H. Boyd-Wilson Weeds ◽  
G.I. Langford ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
New Zealand ◽  
Room Temperature ◽  
Integrated Management ◽  
Management Strategies ◽  
Grey Mould ◽  
Fruit Rot ◽  
Colletotrichum Acutatum ◽  
Relative Importance ◽  
Strawberry Fruit ◽  
Ripe Fruit

The New Zealand strawberry industry experiences losses due to fungal diseases that can cost up to 44 million per annum or 20 of the crop value Disease control relies almost exclusively on applications of the fungicide captan During the 2003/2004 production season grower monitoring trials investigated the relative importance of grey mould (Botrytis cinerea) anthracnose (Colletotrichum acutatum) and leak (Rhizopus spp) in causing postharvest fruit rot The average fruit rot incidence (expressed per day) was 36 22 and 16 for grey mould leak and anthracnose respectively when ripe fruit was incubated at room temperature under high humidity In two grower trials and one replicated spray trial frequent captan applications did not reduce grey mould anthracnose or leak incidence compared to an unsprayed treatment Integrated management strategies for control of strawberry fruit rot diseases are urgently required for New Zealand strawberry growers

scholarly journals Food resource utilization of the skates Rioraja agassizii (Müller & Henle, 1841) and Psammobatis extenta (Garman, 1913) on the continental shelf off Ubatuba, South-eastern Brazil

2001 ◽  
Vol 61 (2) ◽  
pp. 217-238 ◽  
Author(s):  
E. Y. MUTO ◽  
L. S. H. SOARES ◽  
R. GOITEIN
Keyword(s):  
Feeding Habits ◽  
Food Resource ◽  
Stomach Content Analysis ◽  
Brazilian Coast ◽  
Relative Importance ◽  
Important Food ◽  
South Eastern ◽  
Eastern Brazil ◽  
Index Of Relative Importance ◽  
Food Resource Utilization

The feeding habits of Rioraja agassizii (syn. Raja agassizii) and Psammobatis extenta (syn. Psammobatis glansdissimilis) of the South-eastern Brazilian coast were studied by means of stomach content analysis. The samples were obtained on eight seasonal oceanographic cruises, carried out between October 1985 and July 1987. The importance of each food item was evaluated on the basis of the Index of Relative Importance and the feeding similarity by Percentage of Similarity. The results indicated that both species are benthic feeders, preying mainly on Crustacea, especially Amphipoda, Caridea and Brachyura. Teleostei were also important for R. agassizii. Seasonal variation of the diet seems to be associated with the availability of the prey, whose distribution and abundance are related to the dynamics of the water masses of the region. Juveniles and adults of P. extenta exploited the same resources while juveniles and adults of R. agassizii presented low diet similarity during most of the year. Caridea were an important food for all length classes of R. agassizii, while Amphipoda were for smaller specimens, and Teleostei for larger ones. The feeding overlap between the two species was higher during autumn 1986, winter 1986 and winter 1987.

scholarly journals Normative theory of patch foraging decisions

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zachary P Kilpatrick ◽  
Jacob D Davidson ◽  
Ahmed El Hady
Keyword(s):  
Foraging Behavior ◽  
Optimal Foraging ◽  
Food Resource ◽  
Optimal Foraging Theory ◽  
Foraging Theory ◽  
Normative Theory ◽  
Optimal Decision ◽  
Inference Problem ◽  
Foraging Decisions ◽  
Neural Underpinnings

Foraging is a fundamental behavior as animals’ search for food is crucial for their survival. Patch leaving is a canonical foraging behavior, but classic theoretical conceptions of patch leaving decisions lack some key naturalistic details. Optimal foraging theory provides general rules for when an animal should leave a patch, but does not provide mechanistic insights about how those rules change with the structure of the environment. Such a mechanistic framework would aid in designing quantitative experiments to unravel behavioral and neural underpinnings of foraging. To address these shortcomings, we develop a normative theory of patch foraging decisions. Using a Bayesian approach, we treat patch leaving behavior as a statistical inference problem. We derive the animals’ optimal decision strategies in both non-depleting and depleting environments. A majority of these cases can be analyzed explicitly using methods from stochastic processes. Our behavioral predictions are expressed in terms of the optimal patch residence time and the decision rule by which an animal departs a patch. We also extend our theory to a hierarchical model in which the forager learns the environmental food resource distribution. The quantitative framework we develop will therefore help experimenters move from analyzing trial based behavior to continuous behavior without the loss of quantitative rigor. Our theoretical framework both extends optimal foraging theory and motivates a variety of behavioral and neuroscientific experiments investigating patch foraging behavior.

Synthesis: foraging decisions link plants, herbivores and human beings

2015 ◽  
Vol 55 (3) ◽  
pp. 411 ◽  
Author(s):  
F. D. Provenza ◽  
P. Gregorini ◽  
P. C. F. Carvalho
Keyword(s):  
Foraging Behaviour ◽  
Food Selection ◽  
Secondary Compounds ◽  
Social Benefits ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Social Environments ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
Foraging Decisions ◽  
Temporal And Spatial

Herbivores make decisions about where to forage and what combinations and sequences of foods to eat, integrating influences that span generations, with choices manifest daily within a lifetime. These influences begin in utero and early in life; they emerge daily from interactions among internal needs and contexts unique to biophysical and social environments; and they link the cells of plants with the palates of herbivores and humans. This synthesis summarises papers in the special issue of Animal Production Science that explore emerging understanding of these dynamics, and suggests implications for future research that can help people manage livestock for the benefit of landscapes and people by addressing (1) how primary and secondary compounds in plants interact physiologically with cells and organs in animals to influence food selection, (2) temporal and spatial patterns of foraging behaviours that emerge from these interactions in the form of meal dynamics across landscapes, (3) ways humans can manage foraging behaviours and the dynamics of meals for ecological, economic and social benefits, and (4) models of foraging behaviour that integrate the aforementioned influences.

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