Annual variation in growth rate and body condition of adders, Vipera berus: effects of food availability and weather

1997 ◽  
Vol 75 (2) ◽  
pp. 261-270 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lars Erik Lindell

The objective of this study was to see if year-to-year variation in size-specific growth rate and body condition of adders, Vipera berus, was correlated with any of four environmental variables: mean summer temperature, number of sunny days during summer, number of days when the temperature was over 15 °C during summer, and vole density as an index of food abundance. Growth rate and body condition were measured during 5 years in two insular populations of adders (at localities A and I) in central Sweden. At locality A, vole density remained constant among years (range 0.86–3.00/ha), whereas at locality I it changed significantly (0.67–22.67/ha). The two localities were approximately 2 km apart and therefore experienced the same weather conditions. At locality A, growth rates (after sex and snout–vent length were controlled for) remained stable, whereas at locality I they varied significantly among years and showed a significant positive correlation with yearly estimates of vole density. I conclude that the growth rate was affected positively by food abundance, but less so by weather. Body condition of male adders (females were excluded because the sample size was small) varied significantly among years in both populations. At locality A, body condition was positively correlated with number of sunny days, whereas at locality I, where vole density changed over the years, body condition was positively correlated with both vole density and number of sunny days. This suggests that both food abundance and weather may be important in determining body condition.

1998 ◽  
Vol 37 (4-5) ◽  
pp. 259-262 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bjarne R. Horntvedt ◽  
Morten Rambekk ◽  
Rune Bakke

This paper presents a strategy in which mixed biological cultures are exposed to oscillating concentration levels, to improve the potential for coexistence of desired bacterial species. A mechanistic mathematical model is constructed to investigate and illustrate this strategy. This paper is focused on competition between nitrifying, denitrifying and aerobic heterotrophic bacteria in a CSTR with sludge recycle. For nitrifying and aerobic heterotrophic cultures, the effect of sinusoidal oscillations in DO levels with an amplitude of 1.0 mg/l is a 16% specific growth rate reduction compared to that at a constant DO level. The denitrifiers growth rate is increased by an average of 59%, compared to the constant DO level situation. A similar strategy has been tested in a pilot plant. It is concluded that the influence on specific growth rates is a function of the amplitude of the oscillations. The effects are greatest when concentrations fluctuate around the half saturation concentration of the rate limiting component(s).


Animals ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (2) ◽  
pp. 392
Author(s):  
Lydia Katsika ◽  
Mario Huesca Flores ◽  
Yannis Kotzamanis ◽  
Alicia Estevez ◽  
Stavros Chatzifotis

This study was conducted to elucidate the interaction effects of temperature and dietary lipid levels (2 × 2 factorial experiment) on the growth performance, muscle, and liver composition in adult farmed European sea bass (Dicentrarchus labrax). Two groups of fish (190 g; 60 fish per group) were distributed in 12 tanks in triplicates and kept at two different temperature regimes; one starting at 23 °C and then changed to 17 °C for 61 days, and the other starting at 17 °C and then changed to 23 °C for 39 days. Two commercial diets containing both ~44% crude protein but incorporating different dietary lipid levels, 16.5% (D16) and 20.0% (D20) (dry matter (DM)), were fed to the fish to apparent satiation; the type of diet fed to each fish group remained constant throughout the experiment. Final body weight, weight gain, and specific growth rate were significantly higher for the fish group held at 23 °C compared to the fish group at 17 °C (before the temperature changes), while the dietary fat content did not have any profound effect in both groups. Furthermore, the different temperature regimes did not affect muscle or liver composition, but, on the contrary, dietary lipids affected hepatosomatic, perivisceral fat, and visceral indexes. Feed conversion ratio and specific growth rate were not affected by the dietary lipid level. An interaction of temperature and dietary lipid content was observed in daily feed consumption (DFC) and final body weight (FBW).


AMB Express ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jian Ma ◽  
Xueying Wang ◽  
Ting Zhou ◽  
Rui Hu ◽  
Huawei Zou ◽  
...  

AbstractThis study aimed to investigate the effects of cofD gene knock-out on the synthesis of coenzyme F420 and production of methane in Methanobrevibacter ruminantium (M. ruminantium). The experiment successfully constructed a cofD gene knock-out M. ruminantium via homologous recombination technology. The results showed that the logarithmic phase of mutant M. ruminantium (12 h) was lower than the wild-type (24 h). The maximum biomass and specific growth rate of mutant M. ruminantium were significantly lower (P < 0.05) than those of wild-type, and the maximum biomass of mutant M. ruminantium was approximately half of the wild-type; meanwhile, the proliferation was reduced. The synthesis amount of coenzyme F420 of M. ruminantium was significantly decreased (P < 0.05) after the cofD gene knock-out. Moreover, the maximum amount of H2 consumed and CH4 produced by mutant were 14 and 2% of wild-type M. ruminantium respectively. In conclusion, cofD gene knock-out induced the decreased growth rate and reproductive ability of M. ruminantium. Subsequently, the synthesis of coenzyme F420 was decreased. Ultimately, the production capacity of CH4 in M. ruminantium was reduced. Our research provides evidence that cofD gene plays an indispensable role in the regulation of coenzyme F420 synthesis and CH4 production in M. ruminantium.


1961 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 491-505 ◽  
Author(s):  
Andreas H. W. Hauschild ◽  
Hilliard Pivnick

An apparatus is described for the continuous growth of bacteria. Brucella abortus S.19 has been grown in continuous culture for periods up to 3 weeks with populations up to 2 × 1011viable cells per ml and without the establishment of nonsmooth variants.Concentrations between 3 × 109and 2 × 1011cells per ml could be maintained as a function of the dilution rate without the requirement of a known limiting factor in the medium. In a series of steady-state conditions, the specific growth rate increased steadily up to 0.28 hour−1with decreasing population levels.Incidence of mutants was governed by the dilution rate and could also be reduced by various chelating substances.In continuous growth combined with continuous dialysis, population levels were approximately twice those obtained in continuous growth without dialysis. The effect of dialysis appears to be the continuous removal of growth-limiting metabolic products.


Aquaculture ◽  
2008 ◽  
Vol 274 (1) ◽  
pp. 87-95 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Millot ◽  
M.-L. Bégout ◽  
J. Person-Le Ruyet ◽  
G. Breuil ◽  
C. Di-Poï ◽  
...  

2010 ◽  
Vol 45 (11) ◽  
pp. 1800-1807 ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Chenikher ◽  
J.S. Guez ◽  
F. Coutte ◽  
M. Pekpe ◽  
P. Jacques ◽  
...  

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (7) ◽  
pp. 1029
Author(s):  
Marcelo Ferreira ◽  
Aline Soldati ◽  
Sirlene S. S. Rodrigues ◽  
Laércio dos Anjos Benjamin

The insectivorous bat Myotis nigricans is widely distributed throughout the Neotropics, including Brazil, and has a reproductive biology that is affected by climate and food availability. To evaluate the reproductive capacity of this species, morphofunctional parameters of the testes were correlated with environmental variables and the body condition of individuals captured. After bats had been killed, their testes were removed, fixed in Karnovsky’s fluid for 24 h and embedded in resin for evaluation by light microscopy. The mean annual tubulosomatic index (0.58%) and the percentage of seminiferous tubules in the testes (88.96%) were the highest ever recorded for the Order Chiroptera. The percentage of Leydig cells and volume of the cytoplasm of Leydig cells were higher in the rainy than dry season (80.62 ± 3.19% and 573.57 ± 166.95 μm, respectively; mean ± s.d.). Conversely, the percentage of nuclei of the Leydig cells in the dry season (26.17 ± 3.70%; mean ± s.d.) and the total number of Leydig cells (6.38 ± 1.84 × 109; mean ± s.d.) were higher in the dry season. The results of the present study could help in future conservation of these bats because they provide a better understanding of the bats’ reproductive strategies and how the species can adapt to changes.


2012 ◽  
Vol 48 (2) ◽  
pp. 382-386 ◽  
Author(s):  
Juan Aguirre ◽  
Mª Rosa Rodríguez ◽  
Rodrigo González ◽  
Gonzalo García de Fernando

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