Stable isotopes of carbon (δ 13 C) and nitrogen (δ 15 N) are widely used to study the feeding ecology of cetaceans, as they provide critical insights into diet and migratory behaviors. Lipids in tissues may bias the interpretation of δ 13 C. Because of this, lipids need to be extracted before measuring stable isotope ratios, but their removal may alter δ 15 N values. Using nearly 900 skin samples of five cetacean species, this...

There is a rich literature highlighting that pathogens are generally better adapted to infect local than novel hosts, and a separate seemingly contradictory literature indicating that novel pathogens pose the greatest threat to biodiversity and public health. Here, using Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis , the fungus associated with worldwide amphibian declines, we test the hypothesis that there is enough variance in “novel” (qua...

A core challenge in global change biology is to predict how species will respond to future environmental change and to manage these responses. To make such predictions and management actions robust to novel futures, we need to accurately characterize how organisms experience their environments and the biological mechanisms by which they respond. All organisms are thermodynamically connected to their environments through the ex...

Complex ecological relationships, such as host–parasite interactions, are often modeled with laboratory experiments. However, some experimental laboratory conditions, such as temperature or infection dose, are regularly chosen based on convenience or convention, and it is unclear how these decisions systematically affect experimental outcomes. Here, we conducted a meta‐analysis of 58 laboratory studies that exposed amphibians...

Aim To track the peopling of the South Pacific and assess their impact on terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. Location Upolu, Samoa. Taxon Terrestrial and aquatic plants Methods A sedimentary record covering the last c . 10,500 years was recovered from the volcanic crater that contains Lake Lanoto'o near the centre of Upolu Island. Information on past ecological change was obtained from microscopic and macroscopic remains extr...

Global climate change is increasing the frequency of unpredictable weather conditions; however, it remains unclear how species‐level and geographic factors, including body size and latitude, moderate impacts of unusually warm or cool temperatures on disease. Because larger and lower‐latitude hosts generally have slower acclimation times than smaller and higher‐latitude hosts, we hypothesised that their disease susceptibility i...

Tags have been used to examine migration routes and habitat use of large whales for >40 yr, however, evaluation of tag wound healing has largely been short‐term, anecdotal or generalized. This study developed methods for systematic photographic assessment of long‐term external consequences of tag placement, to determine potential differences in wound healing between species and tag types and thus advise future tagging efforts...

Whilst flow is often seen simplistically as a measurable and manageable variable in rivers, the habitat value of flow is delivered by interactions with channel morphology and substrate. The resulting hydromorphology impacts on all salmonid life stages; its proper understanding requires integration between the sciences of hydrology/hydraulics, geomorphology and freshwater ecology, but this integration is scarce. This study desc...

Some species have insufficient defenses against climate change, emerging infectious diseases, and non‐native species because they have not been exposed to these factors over their evolutionary history, and this can decrease their likelihood of persistence. Captive breeding programs are sometimes used to reintroduce individuals back into the wild; however, successful captive breeding and reintroduction can be difficult because...

Rates of oxygen consumption for Atlantic salmon Salmo salar embryos approaching hatching were determined. Values were recorded using a ‘closed system’ experimental set‐up. A magnetic stirrer was used to ensure that zones of oxygen depletion did not develop in the micro‐environment surrounding the respiring eggs. Recorded values of oxygen consumption ranged from 0·0024 to 0·0038 mg O 2 egg −1 h −1 , with a mean consumption rate...

A bstract To assess large‐whale stocks following the cessation of land‐based South Georgia whaling in 1965, we report three independent sighting databases: a cruise in 1997, observations from Bird Island (NW of South Georgia) between 1979 and 1998, and mariner sightings between 1992 and 1997. All species were rare, with sightings of southern right whales being the most common event. Two right whales photographed off South Geor...

Samples were collected from 407 fin whales, Balaenoptera physalus , at four North Atlantic and one Mediterranean Sea summer feeding area as well as the Sea of Cortez in the Pacific Ocean. For each sample, the sex, the sequence of the first 288 nucleotides of the mitochondrial (mt) control region and the genotype at six microsatellite loci were determined. A significant degree of divergence was detected at all nuclear and mt lo...