Gastrointestinal microbiota (GIM) play a crucial role in host physiology and are modulated by host biology, environmental conditions, and temporal dynamics. The GIM of two types of fishes, the redbreast sunfish (Lepomis auritus) and the bullhead catfish (Ameiurus spp.), from three streams over two seasons were sampled for host health (hepatosomatic index, Fulton’s condition factor), age, and additional environmental metadata....

New advents in technology have improved our ability to study and track host-associated organisms. Often, these organisms experience vastly different spatial and temporal scales than their hosts. However, host-associated organisms are not independent of their hosts nor are hosts independent of their host-associated organisms. Rather, processes at the host and host-associated organism scales interact to alter outcomes for both t...

Aquatic ecosystems in mountainous regions are crucial for fulfilling natural and anthropogenic water demands around the world. This study integrates Escherichia coli ( E. coli ) enumeration, microbial source tracking (MST), and environmental DNA (eDNA) analysis to identify sources of fecal contamination in oligotrophic mountain waters. Conducted in an area with intense tourism and traditional reindeer herding, this research ad...

Anthropogenic carbon emissions contribute significantly to the greenhouse effect, resulting in global warming and climate change. Thus, addressing this critical issue requires innovative and comprehensive solutions. Silicate weathering moderates atmospheric CO 2 levels over geological time, but it occurs too slowly to counteract anthropogenic emissions effectively. Here, we show that the microorganism Bacillus subtilis strain...

Along U.S. Atlantic and Gulf Coast barrier islands, red foxes ( Vulpes vulpes ) are top predators that are thought to impact smaller mesopredators and depredate beach-nesting birds. Starting in 2015, sarcoptic mange epizootics among red foxes led to their eventual temporary extirpation from most of Fire Island, NY, USA. We monitored the subsequent changes to the mammalian predator community on this barrier island and explored...

The use of unique markers in ornithology has a long history and is predicated on the assumption that markers have negligible effects on behavior and survival. The assumption that marks are harmless is particularly important with imperiled species. We studied the effects of two different marking schemes on Piping Plovers ( Charadrius melodus ), a small shorebird protected under the U.S. Endangered Species Act that is intensivel...

Cerebral microhemorrhages (CMHs) are of paramount importance as they not only signify underlying vascular pathology but also have profound implications for cognitive function and neurological health, serving as a critical indicator for the early detection and management of vascular cognitive impairment (VCI). This study aimed to investigate the effects of hypertension-induced CMHs on gait dynamics in a mouse model, focusing on...

Caloric restriction (CR) results in reduced energy and protein intake, raising questions about protein restriction’s contribution to CR longevity benefits. We kept ad libitum ( AL )–fed male C57BL/6J mice at 27°C (AL27) and pair-fed (PF) mice at 22°C (22(PF27)). The 22(PF27) group was fed to match AL27 while restricted for calories due to cold-induced metabolism. The 22(PF27) mice had significantly lower body weight, lean mass...

2022 marked the third consecutive La Niña and extended the longest consecutive stretch of negative Oceanic Niño Index since 1998-2001. While physical and biological conditions in winter and spring largely adhered to prior La Niña conditions, summer and fall were very different. Similar to past La Niña events, in winter and spring coastal upwelling was either average or above average, temperature average or below average, salin...

The krill surplus hypothesis of unlimited prey resources available for Antarctic predators due to commercial whaling in the 20th century has remained largely untested since the 1970s. Rapid warming of the Western Antarctic Peninsula (WAP) over the past 50 years has resulted in decreased seasonal ice cover and a reduction of krill. The latter is being exacerbated by a commercial krill fishery in the region. Despite this, humpba...

In late 2020, models predicted that a strong La Niña would take place for the first time since 2013, and we assessed whether physical and biological indicators in 2021 were similar to past La Niñas in the California Current Ecosystem (CCE). The Pacific Decadal Oscillation and Oceanic Niño Index indeed remained negative throughout 2021; the North Pacific Gyre Oscillation Index, however, remained strongly negative. The seventh l...

Purpose Triple negative breast cancer (TNBC) is an aggressive breast cancer subtype that disproportionately affects women of African ancestry (WAA) and is often associated with poor survival. Although there is a high prevalence of TNBC across West Africa and in women of the African diaspora, there has been no comprehensive genomics study to investigate the mutational profile of ancestrally related women across the Caribbean an...

Aim Comprehensive, global information on species' occurrences is an essential biodiversity variable and central to a range of applications in ecology, evolution, biogeography and conservation. Expert range maps often represent a species' only available distributional information and play an increasing role in conservation assessments and macroecology. We provide global range maps for the native ranges of all extant mammal spec...