Posts by Rhiannon Meaden

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Habitat use of bluetongue lizards in tropical climates

Rhiannon Meaden on June 7, 2013 at 11:10 am - 0 Comments

In tropical climates, bluetongue lizards seek oases of cool in order to avoid overheating finds research published in Animal Biotelemetry this week. Unlike their cool-climate cousins, whose behavioral thermoregulation is determined by seeking heat, the diurnal bluetongue lizards of northwestern Australia can only survive where they can use shady refuges of dense vegetation to cool down. And this comes with a warning – these areas are also favoured by toxic cane toads, which threaten the conservation of this species.

By attaching GPS devices to 49 bluetongue lizards (Tiliqua, Scincidae) and radio tracking their movements for up to 221 days, researchers at the University of Sydney have identified critically important features of the habitat …

Home gardens for food security

Rhiannon Meaden on May 31, 2013 at 10:19 am - 0 Comments

Home gardens can be used to alleviate hunger, malnutrition, economic hardship and disease. These are the findings of a comprehensive literature review by Galhena et al ., published today in Agriculture & Food Security, which investigates the uses of home gardens in the context of food security, and specifically in post-conflict situations.

The use of home gardens is a longstanding and effective strategy for coping with the daily threat of food and nutritional insecurity in many developing countries. Home gardens comprise of small areas of land close to the homestead, where a family can grow subsistence produce in order to supplement their diet, as well as to buffer socio-economic hardships. These gardens can incorporate …

The extent of arsenic pollution in contaminated groundwater

Rhiannon Meaden on May 31, 2013 at 9:59 am - 0 Comments

Technology is inadequately assessed for effectiveness to reduce arsenic contamination in groundwater finds a new systematic review published in Environmental Evidence today. Many investigations into the effectiveness of these intervention strategies are poorly devised and thus cannot be relied upon to provide an evidence base for policy making.

In a number of developing countries worldwide, groundwater provides an alternative to drinking visibly polluted surface water. However, Arsenic is colourless and odourless and therefore is often ingested accidentally through drinking contaminated groundwater. Arsenic poisoning poses a threat to public health, and is a serious environmental hazard in many developing countries worldwide.

There are several methods available for removing arsenic from contaminated water. Researchers from the University of Exeter …

Proteins programme snails shells to coil

Rhiannon Meaden on May 28, 2013 at 8:13 am - 0 Comments

It is thanks to the graded concentration of a protein that snails’ shells are coiled according to new research published in EvoDevo today. In coil-shelled snails, this protein concentration gradient originates from a spot on the right or left of the mantle – corresponding to the dextral or sinistral nature of the coil. In limpets, and other non-coiled gastropods, the protein is expressed symmetrically in the mantle, causing a cone-shaped shell.

Evolutionary mechanisms for the diversification of shell-types amongst the physiologically diverse gastropods have been of considerable interest for many years. However, the molecular mechanism describing the development different shell shapes were previously poorly understood. Shimizu et al investigated the expression of the decapentaplegic …

For strawberry poison dart frogs, nearest is dearest

Rhiannon Meaden on May 20, 2013 at 9:04 am - 0 Comments

Strawberry poison dart frog credit Wikimedia Pstevendactylus

Female strawberry poison dart frogs can be non-choosy when it comes to finding a mate concludes research published in Frontiers in Zoology today. In a population with a strongly biased sex ratio and low trait variance between males, females receive no benefit from expending energy and effort searching out the ‘fittest’ mate. Instead they lose no time in seeking out the male in the closest proximity as a partner.

Ivonne Meuche, from the University of Veterinary Medicine Hannover, and her team continuously observed mating behaviour of 20 female Oophaga pumilio frogs, during the time period between two successive ovipositions. In parallel, they measured surrounding males’ behaviour and spatial distribution in order to establish what was important …

Celebrating Agriculture & Food Security’s first birthday

Rhiannon Meaden on April 23, 2013 at 1:50 pm - 0 Comments

Last Friday marked the first anniversary of the launch of Agriculture & Food Security. To celebrate this important milestone in the journal’s history, an anniversary editorial has been published, describing the achievements of the last year, and reiterating the importance of research on this significant global issue.

Following a highly successful launch event at BioVision Alexandria – of which a highlights video is now available online – Agriculture & Food Security has had a rewarding first year of publishing. Over the last year, a number of highly accessed articles by eminent scientists in the field have been published. Topping this list is Albert Sasson’s review on tackling the food insecurity crisis …

Highlighting need for climate smart agricultural policies

Rhiannon Meaden on April 12, 2013 at 3:53 pm - 0 Comments

Agriculture & Food Security publishes a new thematic series on ‘Climate Smart Agriculture’.

Global warming represents one of the greatest threats to society worldwide. The dual burden of climate change coupled with exponentially increasing populations means that our agricultural systems are under increasing pressure to produce food in unstable environmental conditions. The struggle to reach required productivity means that food security is fast becoming a significant threat to lives worldwide. Furthermore, in recent years it has become clear that not only is agricultural productivity threatened by climate change, current agricultural practices may in fact be accelerating atmospheric changes; agriculture is the leading cause of methane and nitrous oxide emissions, as well as a significant cause of deforestation and …

Investigating the developmental basis of mood and anxiety disorders

Rhiannon Meaden on April 12, 2013 at 1:21 pm - 0 Comments

Several recently published studies have suggested that chronic stress in early life may affect the brain’s reaction to certain stimuli, causing changes in the fear response. These changes have been associated with the development of phobias and anxiety disorders, and therefore it is hoped that by furthering our understanding of this process, clinical treatments may become more efficient and effective. This research is evaluated in a timely and comprehensive review published in Biology of Mood & Anxiety Disorders today.

Callaghan and Richardson address this important phenomenon investigating these effects in rat models and evaluating recent contributions to the literature on this subject. This translational research can be used to further understanding of the development and treatment of these …

Tracking the launch of Animal Biotelemetry

Rhiannon Meaden on April 4, 2013 at 10:20 am - 0 Comments

Animal Biotelemetry, a new open access journal published by BioMed Central has launched today. This new journal aims to support the telemetry community by providing a single home for this research and disseminating findings widely across all users of tagging telemetric technology.

Through recent advances in technology, there has been an acceleration in the uses of telemetry to address a wide range of conservation concerns; recording locations, as well as physiological and behavioural measurements of tagged animals. Furthermore, these devices can now be used on a variety of taxa, from measuring the movement of tiny insects, to detecting brain patterns in birds, and long range migration tracking of fish and large mammals.

The journal is led by Editor-in-Chief, …

Nature versus nurture – better looking birds have healthier babies

Rhiannon Meaden on March 25, 2013 at 9:39 am - 0 Comments

The colourations and patterns on a female great tit’s (Parus major) plumage indicates the ability to produce healthier offspring, finds an article published today in Frontiers in Zoology. The black stripe across her breast and white patches on her cheeks correlate to a chick’s weight at two weeks and immune strength respectively – though the former seems to signal a genetic benefit and the latter can affect an ‘adopted’ chick’s health, suggesting nurture is involved.

In a cross-fostering experiment, newly hatched broods were removed from their genetic mothers’ nests and swapped with another female’s brood. By taking two mothers with different patterning, and swapping their chicks, researchers from Palacky University in the Czech Republic were able to …