This study examined escape behaviour of hooded crows, Corvus cornix, in an urban environment, in Belgrade, Serbia, with the goal of assessing the effect of breeding season on components of escape behaviour; flight initiation distance (FID), distance fled (DF), and escape method (flying vs. running/walking). Using GLMMs, it was shown that FID was longer during the breeding season, and increased with alert distance. DF was significantly influenced by escape method, with birds escaping for distances greater than 10 m more often when flying, whereas escape method itself was significantly influenced by FID, with birds escaping more often by flying at greater distances from an approaching predator. The majority of individuals (78%) fled for distances < 10 m after initiating escape, and escaped by walking or running (67%). Our results show that hooded crows, although adapted to living in highly urbanized environments, may be more risk-averse during the breeding season, which may allow them to more successfully take care of their young.
This is the first study detailing the microhabitat specificity of the monogenean parasite, Paradiplozoon ichthyoxanthon Avenant-Oldewage in Avenant-Oldewage et al., 2014. Samples of the monogenean were collected from the gills of the smallmouth yellowfish Labeobarbus aeneus (Burchell) from the Vaal Dam, South Africa, over four seasons with the use of gill nets. Host condition factor fluctuated between the different seasons, with the highest values recorded in summer. Adults and diporpas of P. ichthyoxanthon were found in all four seasons. Adult parasites predominantly infect the first gill arch, whereas diporpas were found on the second and fourth arches. In utero eggs were also found throughout the sampling seasons and their number negatively correlated with the condition factor of the host. The occurrence of adults and diporpas of P. ichthyoxanthon correlated with the size of the host but not the condition factor. Water quality of the study site also had little correlational relationship with the occurrence of the parasites and fluctuations were related to season. The main factor that may drive the microhabitat specificity of P. ichthyoxanthon is the flow of water over the surfaces of the gills and chances of the parasites becoming dislodged. Size of the attachment organs has also been shown to play a role in this specificity, because smaller attachment structures favour stronger holdfast to areas where flow might be stronger compared to larger attachment structures., Beric M. Gilbert, Annemariè Avenant-Oldewage., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Seasonal polyphenism in adults may be a season-specific adaptation of the adult stage and/or a by-product of adaptive plasticity of the juvenile stages. The swallowtail butterfly Papilio xuthus L. exhibits seasonal polyphenism controlled by photoperiod. Adults emerging in spring from pupae that spend winter in diapause have smaller bodies than adults emerging in summer from pupae that do not undergo diapause. Pupal diapause is induced by short-day conditions typical of autumn. To explore the interactive effects of temperature and developmental pathways on the variation in adult body size in P. xuthus, we reared larvae at two temperatures (20°C, 25°C) under two photoperiods (12L : 12D and 16L : 8D). Pupal weight and adult forewing length were greater in the generation that did not undergo diapause and were greater at 25°C than at 20°C. Thus, body size differences were greatest between the individuals that were reared at the longer day length and higher temperature and did not undergo diapause and those that were reared at the shorter day length and lower temperature and did undergo diapause. Unlike in other Lepidoptera, larvae of individuals that undergo diapause had shorter developmental times and higher growth rates than those that did not undergo diapause. This developmental plasticity may enable this butterfly to cope with the unpredictable length of the growing season prior to the onset of winter. Our results indicate that there are unexplored variations in the life history strategy of multivoltine Lepidoptera., Shinya Komata, Teiji Sota., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Eristalis pertinax varies seasonally, with the spring morph more hairy than the summer morph. We measured the size and the venation of the wings of the seasonal morphs. Wings of the spring morph were significantly larger than those of the summer morph and those of females were larger than those of males. There were also significant differences between the morphs in wing venation and their allometric relationship. The differences between sexes were larger than differences between seasonal morphs. The allometry can account for the sexual dimorphism but not seasonal dimorphism. The differences between seasonal morphs in wing shape were relatively large with very few intermediate individuals. The differences were comparable to those between two related species of Syrphidae. Genetic analyses based on markers in nuclear and mitochondrial genomes unequivocally revealed that spring and summer morphs of E. pertinax form a single population and should not be regarded as separate taxa. Thus seasonal variability in this species is a rare example of polyphenism in Diptera., Lukasz E. Mielczarek, Andrzej Oleksa, Katarzyna Meyza, Adam Tofilski., and Obsahuje bibliografii
The increase in wild boar numbers in recent decades is partly due to the involvement of most young females in reproduction as early as their first year of life. After the rut of adult females is over, young females are still entering oestrous as they attain maturity, prolonging the rutting period by several months. This study aimed to evaluate the effect of seasonality on the growth rate of male wild boar bodies, the growth of piglet and yearling male wild boar gonads, and sperm concentration in the epididymides. We found that yearlings’ weight and body length were almost constant in summer and autumn, with a sharp increase in winter. Seasonality was also reflected in the body condition index, which rose by more than 41% between summer and winter. In terms of seasonality, the testimetric dimensions again differed significantly only in winter. Sperm were recorded in piglets weighing more than 15 kg. Regardless of the time of capture, 41% of piglets were examined as juveniles, only 6%, resp. 8% of piglets reached low or medium concentration values. While 10% of all yearling males were azoospermatic (juvenile), regardless of weight, there was evidence of seasonality in the proportion of males with measurable concentrations. These concentrations gradually increased from 62.5% in summer to 78.6% in winter. No sterile male over two years of age was noted. The results show that even in wild boars, there is a culmination not only of physical characteristics in winter but also a culmination of testimetric dimensions. Sperm already occur in 15 kg of piglets, which means they can theoretically participate in the fertilisation of female piglets.
Lidé s vyšší mírou sebehodnocení vykazují nízkou míru neuroticismu a vysokou míru přívětivosti, svědomitosti, extraverze a otevřenosti vůči zkušenosti, což by mohly být ideální předpoklady pro pozici výchovného pracovníka na dětském táboře. Cílem práce bylo zjistit, zda existuje rozdíl v sebehodnocení a rysech osobnosti u výchovných pracovníků a běžnou populací. Výzkumu se dobrovolně účastnilo 1153 respondentů (18 – 40 let), z toho 563 výchovných pracovníků a 590 respondentů z běžné populace. Data byla získávána pomocí online dotazníku, který se skládal z demografických otázek, RSES a BFI – 44. K analýze výsledků jsme využili deskriptivní statistiku a T–test pro nezávislé výběry. Výchovní pracovníci vykazují vyšší hodnotu sebehodnocení, a všech faktorů kromě neuroticismu, zde byly hodnoty nižší. Vedoucími se častěji stávají bývalí účastníci dětských táborů. Výsledky lze uplatnit při výběru vhodných vedoucích na pozice výchovných pracovníků. and People with a higher level of self-esteem show a low level of neuroticism and a high level of friendliness, conscientiousness, extraversion, and openness to experience, which could be ideal preconditions for the position of an educator at a children's camp. This work aims to find out whether there is a difference in self-esteem and personality traits between educators and the general population. 1,153 respondents (18–40 years) participated in this research, where 563 were educators and 590 were respondents from the general population. Data were obtained using an online questionnaire, which consisted of demographic questions, RSES and BFI-44. Data were analyzed by basic descriptive statistics and T-test for independent selections. Educators show a higher value of self-esteem and of all other factors except for neuroticism, where lower values were recorded. Former participants in children's camps became educators more often. The results can be applied in the selection of suitable leaders for the positions of educators.
The annual incidence of cardiovascular diseases is agedependently increasing both in men and women, however, the prevalence is higher in men until midlife. The higher incidence of cardiovascular disease in men than in women of similar age, and the menopause-associated increase in cardiovascular disease in women, has led to speculation that gender-related differences in sex hormones might have a key role in the development and evolution of cardiovascular disease. There are several suggested pathways in which gender and sex hormones can affect human cardiovascular system to produce original sexually different pathophysiology between women and men. Sex steroid hormones and their receptors are critical determinants of cardiovascular gender differences. Also arterial blood pressure is typically lower in women than in men what could be explained particularly by greater synthesis of nitric oxide (NO) in women. Female cardiomyocytes have a greater survival advantage when challenged with oxidative stress, suggesting that female hormones may play an important role in antioxidative protection of myocardium. It was also demonstrated in animal models that combination of XX chromosomes versus an XY chromosomes enhances sex differences in higher HDL cholesterol. Women were found to have reduced sympathetic activity (reflected by lower total peripheral resistance) and pulmonary artery pressure and enhanced parasympathetic activity relative to men. Similarly, men were found to have higher plasma norepinephrine levels than women. Regarding differences between the sexes in electrophysiology of the heart, two principle mechanisms have been proposed to explain them: hormonal effects on the expression or function of ion channels or, conversely, differences in autonomic tone. To improve diagnosis and treatment of cardiovascular diseases, greater focus on understanding the molecular and cellular physiology of the sex steroid hormones and their receptors in the cardiovascular system will be required.
The aim was search for and analyze published researchs dealing with self-efficacy and care burden in informal caregivers and to assess whether there is a relationship between self-efficacy and care burden. The source of the obtained data were licensed and freely available electronic databases. Based on the set criteria, 13 foreign studies published in the period 2010–2020 were included in the detailed analysis and subsequent processing. The results of the found studies have shown that lower self-efficacy is associated with higher care burden, increased stress, and a higher incidence of depressive syndrome in the informal caregivers. On the other hand high self-efficacy is related to the well-being of caregivers and the quality of life of patients. Self-efficacy appears to be an important phenomenon in influencing the care burden and therefore it is necessary to support caregivers to increase their self-efficacy. Appropriately chosen training and education can increase self-efficacy in various areas of care. and Cílem bylo vyhledat a analyzovat publikované výzkumy zabývající se self-efficacy a pečova-telskou zátěží u neformálních pečovatelů a po-soudit, zda existuje vztah mezi self-efficacy a pečovatelskou zátěží. Zdrojem získaných dat byly licencované a volně dostupné elektronické databáze. Na základě stanovených kritérií bylo do podrobné analýzy a následného zpracování zařazeno 13 zahraničních studií publikovaných v období 2010–2020. Výsledky vyhledaných studií poukazují, že nižší self-efficacy souvi-sí s vyšší pečovatelskou zátěží, se zvýšeným stresem a s vyšším výskytem depresivního syndromu u neformálního pečovatele. Vysoké self-efficacy naopak souvisí s pocitem pohody pečovatele a zlepšením kvality života pacienta. Self-efficacy se jeví jako významný fenomén v rámci ovlivňování pečovatelské zátěže, a pro-to je nutné podporovat pečovatele ve zvyšování jejich self-efficacy. Zvýšit self-efficacy v růz-ných oblastech péče mohou vhodně zvolená školení a edukace.
This paper aims to examine whether self-reported home valuations can be a substitute for objective market data in studies on the level of housing wealth inequality. In order to achieve this aim, information on subjective values of flats and their features in Warsaw (Poland) and Prague (Czechia) was used. Next, hedonic models were estimated to calculate the objective values of these residential properties. The results indicated that, on average, homeowners overestimated their real estate by 2.10% in Warsaw and underestimated by 5.49% in Prague. Finally, using tests for the equality of variances, it was examined whether the level of housing wealth inequality differed significantly when calculated using subjective and objective home values. The findings showed that self-reported home values cannot serve as a perfect proxy for market values when assessing the level of housing wealth inequality in both cities.
Trematode sporocysts and rediae reproduce by parthenogenesis, forming clonal groups in the molluscan host. It has recently become popular to consider these groups as eusocial colonies, with division of labour between rediae morphs: small 'soldiers' incapable of reproduction defend the colony, while large rediae reproduce. Alternatively, clonal groups can be considered as self-sustaining infrapopulations. We tested these two hypotheses in the light of new data on rediae of Himasthla elongata (Mehlis, 1831) from snails Littorina littorea (Linnaeus) concerning ultrastructure, growth character and composition of their groups. Clonal groups under study contained rediae of different age and maturity stages: small (young) rediae, rediae with early cercarial embryos, rediae with late embryonic cercariae, rediae with fully formed motile cercariae, rediae with redial embryos and degenerating rediae. Small rediae had a reproductive organ, the germinal mass, whereas most large rediae with developing cercariae did not, which contradicts the eusocialconcept. Overall distribution of rediae by size and by gut to body length ratio was bimodal, which agrees with the eusocial concept ('soldiers' and 'reproductives' as modal size classes). On closer inspection, however, the bimodal size-frequency distributions (SFD) turned out to be the sum of unimodal SFD of rediae at various stages of maturity. The overall bimodality was determined by the character of redial growth resulting in a relatively low occurrence of intermediate morphs and by the developmental arrest in young rediae. The facts that small rediae can attack other rediae and concentrate in the anterior parts of the mollusc can be explained by age-related feeding preferences and niche segregation. They are unlikely to be associated with the 'colony' defence against invaders. To sum up, clonal groups of H. elongata rediae in our study represented self-sustaining infrapopulations., Kirill V. Galaktionov, Irina M. Podvyaznaya, Kirill E. Nikolaev, Ivan A. Levakin., and Obsahuje bibliografii