Feed intake of selected vegetables and fruits by coconut lorikeet (Trichoglossus haematodus) in a colony system

Prijono SN,Rachmatika R, Maharani S. 2021. Feed intake of selected vegetables and fruits by coconut lorikeet (Trichoglossus haematodus) in a colony system. Biodiversitas 22: 4818-4828. Coconut lorikeet (Trichoglossus haematodus (Linnaeus 1771)) is nectarivorous bird. An imbalanced diet is a common problem with lorikeet were kept in captivity. The research method was completely randomized design arranged in a factorial with two factors. The first factor consisted of five types of vegetables or five types of fruits while the second factor consisted of five height levels of feed cup placement (30 cm, 60 cm, 90 cm, 120 cm and, 150 cm from the roof). This study aimed to get information on the feed intake of selected vegetables and fruits that have high attractiveness to meet nutrient requirements and balanced diet for coconut lorikeets kept in a colony aviary. The feed intake of vegetable soybean (26.68 g) was higher than yardlong bean (21.63 g), green cabbage (19.12 g), red cabbage (16.24 g), and broccoli (14.27 g), while the feed intake of plum (14.15 g) was higher than apple (12.31 g), pomegranate (10.88 g), papaya (10.55 g) and guava (9.82 g). Vegetable and fruit intake by six coconut lorikeets in a colony system were 20.80% of the daily diet, and the siwalan sugar solution was 79.20% of the daily diet. It was suggested that the coconut lorikeets should be fed more vegetables than fruits. A good quality, varied and balanced diet will make the coconut lorikeets healthy and it will support future conservation effort.

Transcriptomic analysis of salt tolerance-associated genes and diversity analysis using indel markers in yardlong bean (Vigna unguiculata ssp. sesquipedialis)

Background High salinity is a devastating abiotic stresses for crops. To understand the molecular basis of salinity stress in yardlong bean (Vigna unguiculata ssp. sesquipedalis), and to develop robust markers for improving this trait in germplasm, whole transcriptome RNA sequencing (RNA-seq) was conducted to compare the salt-tolerant variety Suzi 41 and salt-sensitive variety Sujiang 1419 under normal and salt stress conditions. Results Compared with controls, 417 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) were identified under exposure to high salinity, including 42 up- and 11 down-regulated DEGs in salt-tolerant Suzi 41 and 186 up- and 197 down-regulated genes in salt-sensitive Sujiang 1419, validated by qRT-PCR. DEGs were enriched in “Glycolysis/Gluconeogenesis” (ko00010), “Cutin, suberine and wax biosynthesis” (ko00073), and “phenylpropanoid biosynthesis” (ko00940) in Sujiang 1419, although “cysteine/methionine metabolism” (ko00270) was the only pathway significantly enriched in salt-tolerant Suzi 41. Notably, AP2/ERF, LR48, WRKY, and bHLH family transcription factors (TFs) were up-regulated under high salt conditions. Genetic diversity analysis of 84 yardlong bean accessions using 26 InDel markers developed here could distinguish salt-tolerant and salt-sensitive varieties. Conclusions These findings show a limited set of DEGs, primarily TFs, respond to salinity stress in V. unguiculata, and that these InDels associated with salt-inducible loci are reliable for diversity analysis.

Genetic variability, Heritability and Genetic advance studies in Yardlong bean (Vigna unguiculata spp. sesquipedalis) genotypes

A field experiment was carried out at farmer field in Pudukurapettai village, Virudhachalam, Tamilnadu during 2019 to study genetic variability, heritability and genetic advance expressed as per cent of mean for yield and yield attributing characters in thirty three genotypes of yardlong bean. The mean performance recorded on days to first flowering was in the range of (46.78 to 57.33 days), vine length (196.76 to 386.32 cm), days to first picking (57.33 to 67.53 days), pod length (14.18 to 60.08 cm), pod width (1.76 to 3.43 cm), fresh pod weight (171.43 to 995.45 g), number of pods per plant (26.53 to 56.40), number of picking (10.00 to 14.20) and pod yield per plant (171.43 to 995.45 g). The genotypic and phenotypic coefficient of variation showed higher value for pod yield per plant (46.69 % and 46.70 %), fresh pod weight (42.27 and 42.28 %) and pod length (41.66 and 41.66 %). High heritability was observed for the all nine characters. Genetic advance as per cent of mean was higher for pod yield per plant (96.18 %), fresh pod weight (87.08 %), pod length (85.81 %), vine length (36.93 %), pod width (34.16 %) and number of pods per plant (30.04 %).

Genetic variability and correlation studies among yield and yield contributing characters of yardlong bean (Vigna unguiculata ssp. sesquipedalis L. Verdc.)

Twenty-five genotypes of yardlong bean were planted in the field to determine genotypic variances and correlations among characters related to yield. Analysis of variance revealed a highly significant difference among the genotypes for all traits, indicating the presence of variability. The phenotypic coefficients of variations were found slightly higher than the genotypic coefficients of variations, which suggests that the apparent variation is not only genetic but also influenced by the growing environment. High heritability and a high genetic advance were observed in pod yield per plant, pod weight and the number of pods per plant. Yield/plant was positively and significantly correlated with the number of pods/plant, pod length and the number of seeds/pod. The combination of the high heritability along with high genetic advance provides a clear image of the traits in the selection process reflecting the presence of additive gene action for the expression of these traits and improvement of these characters could be done through selection.