Traditional shopping center experience transformed by COVID-19

by Queensland University of Technology

Credit: Queensland University of Technology

A researcher has found that—in the post-COVID era—shoppers now seek functional and transactional value, rather than fun and social interactions when visiting a shopping center.

QUT Professor Gary Mortimer, along with Dr. María Lucila Osorio Andrade from EGADE Business School, Mexico and Dr. Syed Muhammad Fazal-e-Hasan from the Australian Catholic University in Sydney, published their findings in the Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services.

The research was undertaken to better understand changes in consumer behavior regarding the values and experiences that customers seek within shopping centers, using data collected before and after COVID-19.

Professor Mortimer said it had been suggested COVID-19-safety protocols like QR Codes, Sneeze Screens and Social Distancing measures implemented during the pandemic may have altered the values and experiences customers seek within shopping centers.

"We refer to this as a shift from 'traditional' to 'transformed,'" Professor Mortimer said.

"We found, when comparing data collected from shoppers prior to the pandemic with data collected after the pandemic, utilitarian and transactional value was now more important than ever."

As COVID-19 mitigation controls were removed and retail businesses reopened, customers sought greater functional experiences. The range of stores and services offered by shopping centers, and the ease of access and parking, offered immediacy and practicality when shopping, rather than waiting for online purchases to be delivered.

Professor Mortimer explained that as customers had grown accustomed to using "frictionless" and "contactless" payment methods during the pandemic, these innovative transaction methods appear to have become more important to shoppers.

"We still see many of these innovative transaction methods used today, and shoppers are responding well to them."

Surprisingly, time convenience was no more or less important.

"This consistency between pre-and-post COVID-19 samples relating to time convenience suggests that tactics implemented during the pandemic, like 'Click and Collect' and QR code ordering, have facilitated greater speed and efficiency and have been widely accepted by customers, who continue to use these facilities."

"Interestingly, the fun, excitement and hedonic value that shoppers once sought from a trip to the shopping center was now considered less important, as was the social interaction."

Professor Mortimer suggested, that despite shopping centers traditionally being social places, offering fun and entertainment, during the pandemic individuals were forced to find other avenues to facilitate these values and experiences.

More information: Gary Mortimer et al, From traditional to transformed: Examining the pre- and post-COVID consumers' shopping mall experiences, Journal of Retailing and Consumer Services (2023). DOI: 10.1016/j.jretconser.2023.103583

Provided by Queensland University of Technology

Chinese Daigou shoppers represent a new type of entrepreneur

The impact of man-made noise on magpie behavior

by Doug MacLaurin, University of Western Australia

Credit: Pixabay/CC0 Public Domain

Human noise pollution is taking its toll on the iconic Australian magpie, affecting the songbirds' ability to forage for food, communicate and respond to alarm calls—but smart birds are less affected than others.

That's according to new research published today in Global Change Biology, which found loud man-made noises are leaving magpies at a disadvantage.

Lead author of the study, Ph.D. candidate Grace Blackburn from The University of Western Australia's School of Biological Sciences, said man-made noise was altering the everyday lives of magpies, but those with better cognitive performance were better able to deal with this noise.

"We found that loud anthropogenic, or human-generated, noise of above 50 decibels decreased the amount of time magpies spent looking for food, and their foraging efficiency," Blackburn said.

"We also saw that when it's noisy, magpies don't sing or vocalize as much as they do when it's quieter, which can affect how they communicate and interact with each other."

The study found that when there's loud man-made noise, magpies may not hear or respond appropriately to important alarm calls from their groupmates, which helped keep them safe from predators.

"Interestingly, we saw that smarter birds, defined as those that performed better in our cognitive tests, seemed to be more able to maintain their normal response to alarm calls, even when man-made noise was present," Blackburn said.

The researchers used cognitive testing, behavioral observations and playback experiments in their work.

"Until recently, studies looking at the impacts of human noise pollution on wildlife had focused primarily on population-level consequences for species, rather than individual-level impacts," Blackburn said.

"We wanted to investigate not only how human noise affected magpies but whether cognition could help individuals to respond to and cope with this noise."

Blackburn said as human populations grow and expand, understanding the role of cognition in helping magpies to deal with these environmental changes such as man-made noise, could provide important clues to help protect not only this species, but all affected wildlife.

More information: Grace Blackburn et al, Cognition mediates response to anthropogenic noise in wild Western Australian magpies (Gmynorhina tibicen dorsalis), Global Change Biology (2023). DOI: 10.1111/gcb.16975

Journal information: Global Change Biology

Provided by University of Western Australia Noise pollution is hurting animals, and we don't even know how much

 

Scientists discover how low phosphorus regulates rice architecture and nutrient uptake

by Zhang Nannan, Chinese Academy of Sciences

Credit: Molecular Plant (2023). DOI: 10.1016/j.molp.2023.09.022

Researchers led by Dr. Wang Bing and Li Jiayang from the Institute of Genetics and Developmental Biology of the Chinese Academy of Sciences have shown that low phosphorus activates the biosynthesis and signaling of strigoalactones to regulate plant architecture and nitrogen and phosphate uptake in rice.

The researchers also developed transgenic plants with higher nutrient use efficiency, improved shoot and root architecture, and increased biomass and grain yield under low- and medium-phosphorous conditions. The study was published in Molecular Plant on Oct. 4.

Phosphorus is one of the macroelements required for crop growth and development. High crop yield depends on the heavy use of chemical fertilizers, such as phosphorus fertilizers, which increase crop yield but reduce the efficiency of phosphorus use. Phosphorus rock is a non-renewable resource, and the excessive production and application of phosphorus fertilizer have led to the waste of agricultural resources and environmental pollution, which is unfavorable for the sustainable development of agriculture.

Therefore, it is important to explore the mechanisms of the low-phosphorus plant responses to improve phosphorus use efficiency, reduce phosphorus fertilizer application, and achieve the sustainable development of agriculture.

Strigolactones are a class of plant hormones that regulate various biological processes and play an important role in the response to phosphorus deficiency. Low-phosphorus stress significantly induces strigolactone biosynthesis in rice, but the transcription factors regulating this process have not been identified. The mechanisms by which strigolactone regulates key plant architecture and the balance of nitrogen and phosphorus in rice under low-phosphorus conditions remain unclear.

This study found that in the low-phosphorus environment, the rice phosphorus signaling core regulator OsPHR2 directly activates the expression of NSP1, NSP2 and strigolactone synthesis genes; NSP1 and NSP2 also form a heterodimer that directly binds to and activates the transcription of strigolactone synthesis.

Strigolactone further activates its signaling pathway to inhibit tiller bud elongation and reduce lateral root density by promoting the expression of the negative tiller regulator OsTB1 and inhibiting CRL1 expression, respectively. Interestingly, they found that strigolactones inhibit nitrogen uptake and transport by regulating the expression of nitrogen transporter genes such as OsNRT2.1, OsNRT1.1B and OsNAR2.1 and promote phosphorus uptake by activating the expression of phosphorus transporter genes OsPTs.

These results illustrate a new mechanism underlying the balance of nitrogen and phosphorus in rice.

Furthermore, the researchers found that although overexpression of NSP1 and NSP2 with constitutive promoters resulted in reduced tiller number, panicle length and grain yield, overexpression of NSP1 and NSP2 with their own promoters performed appropriately elevated strigolactone biosynthesis and increased phosphorus absorption in a low-phosphorus environment. The NSP1p:NSP1 and NSP2p:NSP2 plants showed increased nitrogen uptake, increased tiller number, panicle length, biomass, and grain yield per plant under low- and medium-phosphorus conditions.

In conclusion, the researchers revealed the regulatory mechanisms of strigolactone biosynthesis and the role of strigolactone signaling in adaptation to low-phosphorus environments. This study provides genetic resources and effective strategies for improving rice architecture and nutrient use efficiency under low-phosphorus conditions, and lays a solid foundation for the molecular design and breeding of high-yielding and high-efficiency crops.

More information: Kun Yuan et al, Low phosphorus promotes NSP1–NSP2 heterodimerization to enhance strigolactone biosynthesis and regulate shoot and root architectures in rice, Molecular Plant (2023). DOI: 10.1016/j.molp.2023.09.022. www.cell.com/molecular-plant/f … 1674-2052(23)00313-1

Journal information: Molecular Plant 

Provided by Chinese Academy of Sciences Phosphorus shortage could affect worldwide crop yields

 

Sea change: New blueprint for Southern Ocean survival

by University of Tasmania

Credit: Pat James AAD

More than 200 scientists from 19 countries will release the first comprehensive assessment of trends in Southern Ocean ecosystems on 18 October, in a reportmade available on Zenodo and written specifically for policy makers.

The "Marine Ecosystem Assessment for the Southern Ocean (MEASO)" stresses that climate change is the most significant driver of species and ecosystem change in the Southern Ocean and coastal Antarctica.

"Long-term maintenance of Southern Ocean ecosystems, particularly polar-adapted Antarctic species and coastal systems, can only be achieved by urgent global action to curb climate change and ocean acidification," the report says.

Co-convenor Dr. Andrew Constable of the University of Tasmania said that the five-year MEASO process was modeled on a working group of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC). "MEASO is like an IPCC report for the Southern Ocean, and in a similar way we have distilled the science into an easy-to-read and concise summary to inform politicians and policy makers around the world.

"We've launched this report to coincide with this year's international meeting of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) in Hobart," Dr. Constable said.

CCAMLR is the international body under the Antarctic Treaty System responsible for the conservation of marine ecosystems in the Southern Ocean, with membership of 26 nations and the European Union.

MEASO co-convenor Dr. Jess Melbourne-Thomas from Australia's national science agency CSIRO said that the Southern Ocean around Antarctica is absorbing most of the global temperature rise. "The unique wildlife of the Southern Ocean is feeling the heat and, together with additional pressures from fisheries, tourism, and pollution, faces an uncertain future.

"As well as its fundamental importance to biodiversity, the Southern Ocean is crucial to human welfare by providing us with food and helping to control our climate," Dr. Melbourne-Thomas said.

Professor Nathan Bindoff, leader of the Australian Antarctic Program Partnership at the University of Tasmania, said that the MEASO process should continue in this critical decade for action on climate. "Currently assessments of change in habitats, species and food webs in the Southern Ocean are compiled separately for at least ten different international organizations or processes.

"Bringing the best-available science together in a timely fashion through the MEASO process is an excellent way to harmonize the information for policy makers," Prof Bindoff said.

More information: Marine Ecosystem Assessment for the Southern Ocean: Summary for Policymakers, Zenodo (2023). DOI: 10.5281/zenodo.8359585

Provided by University of Tasmania Scientists call for setting limits, possible moratorium on fishing in Antarctica's Southern Ocean

 

How animal traits have shaped the journey of species across the globe

by Sarah-Sophie Weil, The Conversation

The larger species in many groups crossed oceans and mountains most successfully over

 the last 300 million years – be it leopards, chameleons or tree frogs. 

Credit: Volodymyr Burdiak/Shutterstock

The devastating tsunami that hit Japan in March 2011 set off a series of events which have long fascinated scientists like me. It was so powerful that it caused 5 million tons of debris to wash into the Pacific—1.5 million tons remained afloat and started drifting with the currents.

One year later, and half a world away, debris began washing ashore on the west coast of North America. More than 280 Japanese coastal species such as mussels, barnacles and even some species of fish, had hitched a ride on the debris and made an incredible journey across the ocean. These species were still alive and had the potential to establish new populations.

How animals cross major barriers, such as oceans and mountain ranges, to shape Earth's biodiversity is an intriguing topic. And a new study published in Nature Ecology & Evolution by my collaborators and I has shed light on this process, revealing how animal characteristics such as body size and life history can influence their spread across the globe.

We know that such dispersal events occur in terrestrial species as well. For instance, at least 15 green iguanas journeyed more than 200km (124 miles) from Guadeloupe to Anguilla in the Caribbean in 1995. They arrived on a mat of logs and trees (likely uprooted through a hurricane), some of which were more than 9 meters (20 feet) long.

The role of animal characteristics in dispersal

When animals move across major barriers it can have a big impact on both the new and old locations. For example, an invasive species can arrive in a new area and compete with native species for resources. However, those consequences can be even greater over longer periods of time.

The movement of monkeys from Africa to South America around 35 million years ago led to the evolution of more than 90 species of New World monkeys, including tamarins, capuchins and spider monkeys. And a few chameleons rafting on vegetation from Africa to Madagascar is why we find half of all living chameleon species there today.

These events were long thought to be determined by chance—the coincidence of some chameleons sitting on the right tree at the right time. However, some scientists have suggested there might be more to it. They hypothesized there could be more general patterns in the animals that reach their destination successfully, related to certain characteristics.

Could body size affect how far a species can travel? Animals with more fat reserves may be able to travel longer distances. Or could it be how a species reproduces and survives? For example, animals that lay many eggs or mature early may be more likely to establish a new population in a new place.

But despite a vigorous theoretical debate, the options to test these hypotheses were limited because such dispersal events are rare. Also, the right statistical tools were not available until recently.

Thanks to the recent development of new biogeographical models and the great availability of data, we can now try to answer questions about how tetrapod species (amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals) have moved around the globe over the past 300 million years and whether successful species share any common characteristics.

These models allow us to estimate the movements of species' ancestors while also considering their characteristics. We used these models to study 7,009 species belonging to 56 groups of tetrapods.

What we found

For 91% of the animal groups we studied, models that included species characteristics were better supported than models that didn't. This means that body size and life history are closely linked to how successful a species is at moving to and establishing itself in a new location.

Animals with large bodies and fast life histories (breeding early and often, like water voles) generally dispersed more successfully, as expected. However, there were some exceptions to this rule. In some groups, smaller animals or animals with average traits had higher dispersal rates.

For example, small hummingbirds dispersed better than larger ones, and poison dart frogs with intermediate life histories dispersed better than those with very fast or very slow life histories.

We investigated this variation further and found that the relationship between body size and movement depended on the average size and life history of the group. Our results show that the links between characteristics and dispersal success depend on both body size and life history, and that these cannot be considered separately.

Groups in which small size was an advantage were often already made up of small species (making the dispersal-prone species even smaller), and these species also had fast life histories. We found this to be true for the rodent families Muridae and Cricetidae.

But groups in which dispersers had intermediate body sizes generally had slow life histories (meaning they had low reproductive output but long lifespans). This means the combination of small body size and slow life history is very unlikely to be an advantage for dispersal across major barriers such as oceans.

It's not just chance

It is amazing to think that rare dispersal events, which can lead to the rise of many new species, are not completely random. Instead, the intrinsic characteristics of species can shape the histories of entire groups of animals, even though chance still may play an important role.

At the same time, two of the most important environmental challenges of our time are related to movement across major barriers: biological invasions and species' responses to climate change. On a planet facing rapid changes, understanding how animals move across barriers is therefore crucial.

More information: Sarah-Sophie Weil et al, Body size and life history shape the historical biogeography of tetrapods, Nature Ecology & Evolution (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41559-023-02150-5

Journal information: Nature Ecology & Evolution 

Provided by The Conversation 

This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article.Live fast, avoid extinction: Fast-lived species may be more resilient to human influences

 

New look at a Lorrainosaurus in a museum finds plesiosaurs evolved earlier than thought

by Bob Yirka , Phys.org

Skeletal remains of the holotype (MNHNL BU159) of Lorrainosaurus keileni.

 (a) Reconstruction in lateral view showing recovered elements. (b) Tooth crown with root. 

(c) Posterior section of mandible in lateral view. (d) Glenoid section of mandible in articular 

view. (e) Complete mandible in ventral view. (f) Enlargement of the mandibular symphysis.

 (g) Coracoid in dorsal view.

 Credit: Scientific Reports (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-43015-y

A team of paleontologists from Naturkunde-Museum Bielefeld, Adenauerplatz, the Polish Academy of Sciences, Natural History Museum Luxembourg and The Museum of Evolution at Uppsala University has found through study of a Lorrainosaurus fossil residing at Luxembourg's National Museum of Natural History (MNHN) that the clade it belonged to, Plesiosauria, evolved earlier than previously thought. Their paper is published in the journal Scientific Reports.

Plesiosaurs were a clade of ancient, shark-like creatures that roamed at least one of the world's oceans millions of years ago. Their large size and alligator-like teeth earned them the nickname "sea murderers." Though fossil finds have been few, paleontologists have learned that some sub-species of large plesiosaurs grew to approximately 14.5 meters long—approximately twice as long as modern orca. They also had two pairs of side fins, allowing them to pursue prey with more dexterity than modern sharks.

In 1983, a group of amateur paleontologists discovered a plesiosaur fossil near Lorrain, France. They contacted a team at MNHN, whose members dug it up, studied it and then put it on display, where it has been ever since. In this new effort, the research team took a new look at the fossil and learned more about it and its ancestors.

The researchers began their new study after noting that the Lorrainosaurus fossil represented a new genus and gave it a new name: Lorrainosaurus. They also noted that it appeared small compared to other related fossils that have been found, at just 6 meters in length—about the length of the longest modern great whites.

In taking a closer look at its features and comparing them with other fossils that have been found, the team concluded that Lorrainosaurus was one of the earliest plesiosaurs and that it gave rise to some of the larger marine reptiles of later times. Plesiosaurs, the team notes, were an apex predator for some 80 million years.

The researchers also found evidence that plesiosaurs developed earlier than thought—as far back as the Middle Jurassic—and that they lived mostly in a part of the ocean that is now western Europe.

More information: Sven Sachs et al, The rise of macropredatory pliosaurids near the Early-Middle Jurassic transition, Scientific Reports (2023). DOI: 10.1038/s41598-023-43015-y

Journal information: Scientific Reports 

© 2023 Science X Network

Plesiosaurs, pliosaurs, hybodonts: Looking back at three prehistoric predators of the Jurassic seas

Comet Encke and the Halloween Fireballs of 2023

by David Dickinson, Universe Today

Comet Encke (left) versus the Tadpoles (NGC 1893) on August 24, 2023. Credit: Dan Bartlett

October and November are always great months to watch for meteors, and 2023 is no exception. This year provides a special reason to be vigilant, as the source of the November Taurid Fireballs Comet 2P Encke reaches perihelion for 2023 on October 22nd, at 0.34 Astronomical Units (AU) from the sun.

Unfortunately, Encke's 2023 apparition isn't a favorable one for Earthbound observers. Currently low in the dawn, the comet is only four degrees from the sun when it reaches perihelion on the far side of its orbit, nearly opposite to the Earth.

Encke held the title of the comet with shortest orbital period at 3.3 years until 2013, when the faint comet 311P/PanSTARRS nudged it out of this distinction, with an orbit of just 3.2 years.

The next favorable pass of the comet isn't until July 11th, 2030, at 0.27 AU distant. That isn't far off from the closest the comet can approach us, as it has a MOID (Minimum Orbital Intersection Distance) versus the Earth of 0.17 AU or 25 million kilometers. Comet 2P Encke reaches perihelion inside the orbit of Mercury, and ranges out to an aphelion in the asteroid belt between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.
Enigmatic tales (tails?) of Comet Encke

Clearly, Comet 2P Encke is an interesting one. Apollo asteroid 2004 TG10 seems to be a fragment related to the comet, perhaps from a breakup catastrophe some 20,000 years ago. The comet is part of a greater swarm known as the Encke (or Taurid) Complex.

Encke and the Taurid Swarm Complex have even been implicated in the 1908 Tunguska Event. This historic event occurred when an asteroid or a fragment of a comet exploded above the Siberian tundra on the morning of June 30.

Encke was also the second short period comet identified. Astronomer Johann Encke noticed in 1819 that several apparitions of the comet were actually one and the same. Observations of the comet may actually stretch back much further in Chinese texts, spanning thousands of years.

We've never seen Comet Encke up close. One mission, NASA's Comet Nucleus Tour (CONTOUR) was once scheduled to intercept the comet. Unfortunately, CONTOUR failed in 2002 shortly after launch. As a denizen of the inner solar system, Encke is in a 7:2 resonance with Jupiter. The comet approaches the inner planets, and may even occasionally grace them with meteor showers as well. NASA's Mercury MESSENGER mission even caught a view of Comet Encke in 2013.

The orbit of Comet 2/P Encke. Credit: NASA/JPL/Horizons


Halloween Fireballs, swarms and storms

The November Taurids produce two streams, both hailing from the constellation of Taurus the Bull. The showers are active over a broad period from late October to mid-November. The twin peaks occur on November 12th (Northern Taurids) and November 5th (Southern Taurids) respectively. Both showers produce low rates of just five meteors per hour, hardly above the background sporadic rate. The notoriety for the pair stems from the high rate of fireballs they produce. Almost every year, we see fireball reports online pick up in late October.

The Taurids have also gained the name of the "Halloween Fireballs" as of late. It's a shame, however, that since 2007, most of North America now shifts back to standard time in early November after October 31. This pushes any Halloween driveway star parties back until later in the evening, when it's finally dark.

This year, the hunter's full moon occurs on October 28, featuring a shallow partial lunar eclipse for Europe and Africa. The good news is, a bright moon shouldn't really bother things when it comes to fireballs. Though the Taurid radiant rises and becomes active around midnight local time, you might just spy some stragglers early on in the evening. These Earth-grazers can be dramatic as they approach us from behind and struggle to catch up, leaving a long trail.

The Taurids seem to have a seven year peak periodicity, equaling once every other orbit for the comet. The Taurids last put on a show in 2015, and again last year in 2022. Could 2023 be another such year? Keep in mind, most meteors are just dust grains, and the fireballs you see are actually no more than pea-sized pellets from Comet Encke.

The projected and observed (black dots) light curve for Comet 2P/Encke in 2023. Credit: Seiichi Yoshida’s Weekly Information About Bright Comets
Orionids, Leonids and more

A few other showers are afoot this season. First, the October Orionids peak this coming weekend, with an expected Zenthinal hourly rate (ZHR) of 20 capping out on the morning of Sunday, October 22. Keep in mind, the ZHR is an ideal rate, representing the number of meteors you could expect to see under moonless, dark skies with the radiant directly overhead near the zenith; most observers will see much less. The source of the Orionids is none other than the famous first periodic comet discovered, 1P/Halley.

Also, keep an eye on the Leonids around November 18. To be sure, 2023 is expected to be an "off-year" for the shower, with perhaps just 15 meteors per hour. The Leonids are infamous for producing great outbursts once about every 33 years, which last occurred during the 1998 and 1999 season. This year is intriguing, however, as there's evidence that we may approach an older 1767 trail for the Leonid stream, so we may be in for an uptick in activity.

You can always trace meteors back to the radiants in their respective constellations that they're named after. This makes for quick identification, especially during times of the year when several showers are active; if you can trace a meteor back to Orion, it's an Orionid, Leo, it's a Leonid, etc. There are also random sporadics visible on most given evenings, with a rate topping five or so per hour.

The radiants for the Northern and Southern Taurids, looking to the east post dusk. 

Credit: Stellarium

Comet Encke, as seen from NASA’s MESSENGER spacecraft in orbit around Mercury. Credit: NASA/JHUAPL/MESSENGER


Sprinkles of sporadics

Sporadics tend to approach the Earth headlong from along the direction it is heading around the sun, a point known as the antihelion. In late October this sits along the ecliptic plane in the direction of the constellation Taurus, meaning that the Taurid meteors from Comet Encke dominate the scene. The sporadic rate generally picks up again during northern hemisphere spring. There are always lots of minor showers active throughout the year. Meteor streams evolve as they weaken and intensify over time. New streams are even occasionally discovered, as these old debris trails laid down by ancient comets are perturbed by planets and begin to intersect the path of the Earth.

And this is just a prelude to December, which hosts the elusive Andromedids, the Solstice Ursids, and the sure-fire Geminid meteors. One thing is for sure: you won't see anything if you don't get out there and look. If skies are clear, keep an eye out for the Taurid Fireballs over the coming weeks, as harbingers to the winter meteor season.


Provided by Universe Today


Explore furtherThe 'meteors of Halloween' are back this year. What to know about spotting a fireball

 

Explaining the geological history of Indonesia using beetle evolution

by University of Vienna

100 species of the genus Trigonopterus. Credit: Alexander Riedel Natural History Museum Karlsruhe

A new study on weevils led by biologists Harald Letsch from the University of Vienna and Alexander Riedel from the State Natural History Museum in Karlsruhe brings new cross-disciplinary findings. Based on the evolution of the weevils there, conclusions can be drawn about the geological development of Indonesia and the Western Pacific.

The authors were able to sketch maps of land development in Indonesia and the Western Pacific that looked 40 million years into the past and showed, for example, that the Papuan peninsulas rose from the sea earlier than previously thought. The study was recently published in the journal Ecography.

The islands of Indonesia and the Western Pacific are known to be home to very rich biodiversity, including a myriad of flightless weevils of the genus Trigonopterus. Based on DNA data from 1,006 species of weevil, biologist Harald Letsch from the University of Vienna calculated a temporal family tree.

This not only creates one of the most comprehensive family trees ever created for a single animal genus, it also enables new insights into the complex geological history of the region's origins as well as its extraordinary and threatened biodiversity.

Pristine rainforest, the habitat of the Trigonopterus weevils, here on the island of Biak. Credit: Alexander Riedel Natural History Museum Karlsruhe

Geographic maps dating back up to 40 million years

Beetles of the genus Trigonopterus are wingless and therefore flightless, which limits most species to relatively small areas of distribution. In such a case, geographical isolation leads to individual populations diverging and ultimately forming separate species.

In an islanded habitat, diversification rates indicate the presence and eventual increase in available habitat, regardless of whether these land areas still exist today. Biological data such as that of weevils can provide information about the geological landscape of their habitats, even if the islands that were once present have now disappeared due to erosion.

Using the evolutionary history of Trigonopterus , Letsch and his colleagues were finally able to sketch maps of land development in Indonesia and the Western Pacific that look 40 million years into the past. They provide fascinating new insights into the geological history of the region. For example, based on the analysis, the authors assume that parts of the Papuan Peninsula of New Guinea rose from the sea 40 million years ago, earlier than some current hypotheses assume.

Schematic representation of the spread of Trigonopterus weevils from northern Australia. Credit: Harald Letsch

Island under water discovered today

According to the analyses , the diversification of Trigonopterus on Samoa began around 23 million years ago. An explanation for this is provided by the westernmost extension of the island chain, which is now under water. An early island and its habitats probably fell victim to erosion and can now only be seen on undersea relief maps.

With their extensive investigation, the scientists were able to show that this approach to geology can provide valuable information. Thus, the role of so-called biogeography could change from a receiver of information to a supplier of useful information for other scientific fields.

More information: Harald Letsch et al, Beetle evolution illuminates the geological history of the World's most diverse tropical archipelago, Ecography (2023). DOI: 10.1111/ecog.06898

Journal information: Ecography 

Provided by University of Vienna Trigonopterus corona, the new species of tiny beetle named after the coronavirus

Surprise delivery: Three endangered sawfish born at SeaWorld Orlando

by Dewayne Bevil, Orlando Sentinel

Pristis pectinata (Aquarium of the Americas). Credit: Public Domain

An unexpected pregnancy is making history at SeaWorld Orlando. Three smalltooth sawfish pups, born this summer at the theme park, are now living backstage and providing data and mystery.

SeaWorld's aquarium is the only one in the U.S. to house the endangered species and the second one in the world to host a successful birth. The mother has lived at SeaWorld since at least 1988; she and a male are residents of the park's Shark Encounter aquarium.

"This is a monumental event for us and for all zoos and aquariums," said Becki Orze, one of the zoological specialists of that habitat.

The pregnancy was discovered during a routine exam's ultrasound. It came out of nowhere, officials said.

"We actually, at times, speculated maybe she was too old to give birth," Orze said.

"Just the fact that she carried a pregnancy to term successfully at a minimum age of her early 30s is a fascinating piece of information that we didn't have before this event," she said. "And by we, I mean the entire sawfish nerd science community."

SeaWorld kept a lid on the births until Tuesday during annual passholder events tied to International Sawfish Day. Smalltooth sawfish have been listed on the Endangered Species Act for 20 years. These days, they are found primarily in the Bahamas, Cuba and around Florida.

There are five species of sawfish around the world, all endangered.

"It looks like a hedge trimmer on the front. It's a stingray in the middle. And it's a shark at the back end. If you mix them all together, then you get a sawfish," explained Adam Brame, sawfish recovery coordinator with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

The prominent front end—aka the rostrum—typically contains between 20 and 29 unpaired teeth, he said, though they are covered in gelatin at birth, protecting the mother.

About a week before the births, SeaWorld moved the mother to its Aquarium Health Center "so that she could give birth in a quiet and protected environment that was safe, comfortable for her and her pups," Orze said.

Mom and pups are kept isolated from one another, which is not a departure from their newborn behaviors in the wild. SeaWorld is monitoring their weight, length, diet and vital stats.

"This is why so many of us got into this career, to be able to work with people who work in the field and see those parallels between managing wild populations, our free-ranging populations, and those under managed care," said Dr. Dana Lindemann, a SeaWorld Orlando veterinarian.

The pups have doubled in weight since birth. Full-grown smalltooth sawfish typically grow to be about 11 to 12 feet long. (The record is 16 feet, Brame said). Their mom is a little longer than 11 feet and weighs 385 pounds.

The experts are studying why, after all these years, a pregnancy occurred.

"We're all learning every day, both in the field and in managed care," Lindemann said. "It's possible that females may be able to source for a prolonged period of time. I think four years may be the limit that we're aware of, but we just don't know."

Changes in the Shark Encounter environment, including LEDs and tank filtration, may have played roles.

"We did also bump up the temperature a few years ago, which could definitely be part of it," Orze said. "Perhaps they appreciate a little bit warmer water."

The future of the new arrivals is to be determined. The Association of Zoos and Aquariums, which maintains the Species Survival Plan, may pair them with sawfish born at an aquarium several years ago in the Bahamas.

"There's a lot of genetics involved, planning involved, but the goal would be an add to the genetic diversity of this group here," said Jim Kinsler, SeaWorld's lead curator of zoological operations.

The mom and offspring are not currently in a tank that can be seen by SeaWorld visitors.

"Right now at the health center, we have an environment where we can really closely monitor how much each individual is eating, which is really important because we are learning so much right now. We want to make sure that they're gaining weight and growing appropriately," Lindemann said.

A public-facing viewing will happen, eventually, Kinsler told Tuesday's audience.

2023 Orlando Sentinel. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.

Sawfish tagged in Cedar Key for first time in decades