One of the architectural jewels of the Academy of Sciences of the Czech Republic in Prague is its Villa Lanna. The Editorial Staff of Academic bulletin decided it deserved recognition with a supplement the Academy's official magazine, enclosed with the September issue. The Staff is indebted to Prof. Jan Bažant who kindly wrote the historical and artistic aspects of this magnificent edifice. On October 8, 2013, the Editorial Staff arranged a small celebration during which Professor Ba2ant guided a group on a tour through this outstanding Neo-Renaissance villa. A photography gallery of the celebration is available on the third cover of this issue as well at the http://abicko.avcrcz. and Mgr. Marina Hužvárová.
Alien phytophagous insects are often introduced along with their host plants, creating opportunities for troublesome invasions. Yet, not all of them are able to successfully colonize novel host plants. In this study, we investigated host selection by the alien leaf miner Phyllonorycter leucographella (Zeller, 1850) on both its original host and novel host plants in the insect's alien range. We predicted that this insect's percentage infestation of the original host would be positively related to its specific leaf area (SLA), because high-SLA leaves are nutritious and have thin cuticles, traits related to high offspring developmental success. We further hypothesized that this host selection process would apply in the selection of novel host plants. Our results show that this leaf miner selects leaves of its original host plant, Pyracantha coccinea, according to their SLA values. The SLA value was also positively related to the probability of P. leucographella infesting and successfully developing on novel host plants. The selection of high-SLA plants by the moth leads to a high developmental success on novel host plants in the first (summer) generation, but it is likely to be maladaptive in the second (overwintering) generation, because in temperate Europe, high SLA values are associated with deciduous plants that shed their leaves in autumn. It is likely that the apparent maladaptive selection of novel host plants by P. leucographella reduces the invasiveness of this pest by preventing its establishment on native plants., Urszula Walczak, Michał Bogdziewicz, Roma Żytkowiak, Piotr Karolewski, Edward Baraniak., and Obsahuje bibliografii
Suchozemští plži patří k nejlépe prozkoumaným skupinám bezobratlých temperátní a boreální zóny. Díky znalostem o ekologii a rozšíření jednotlivých druhů tak představují výbornou modelovou skupinu pro studium rozmanitých témat. Na příkladu plžů byl zkoumán např. fenomén hnízdovitosti společenstev, rozdíly v biologii a rozšíření velkých a drobných druhů s ohledem na míru pasivního šíření, kvartérní vývoj krajiny nebo třeba latitudinální gradient diverzity. Mnohé otázky však stále zůstávají otevřené, např. vlivy predace a mezidruhové konkurence ve společenstvech plžů nebo vazba některých druhů na podmínky obecně považované za nepříznivé, jako jsou velmi chladné oblasti nebo vápníkem chudá stanoviště., Land snails are considered one of the best-explored invertebrates of temperate and boreal zones. With respect to the extensive knowledge about their ecology and distribution, land snails make a great model group for studying various topics. Snails contributed to our knowledge about the nestedness of assemblage composition, differences in biology and distribution of large and small species (regarding their ability for passive dispersal), Quaternary landscape evolution, and the latitudinal diversity gradient. Other topics still remain open, such as the effects of predation and interspecific competition among land-snail assemblages and the association of some species to generally unfavourable conditions (e.g. areas of extremely cold temperatures or calcium-poor sites)., and Michal Horsák, Veronika Horsáková.
Chovu malých jihoamerických cichlid rodů Laetacara a Nannacara se mohou věnovat i akvaristé, kteří své zálibě nemohou vyčlenit ve svém domově příliš velký prostor. Velkoryse pojaté akvaristické zázemí není v tomto případu nezbytné. Tyto rybky se starají o své potomstvo velmi starostlivě, takže lze při rozmnožování pozorovat různé projevy rodičovské péče., South American cichlids of the genera Laetacara and Nannacara can be bred also by aquarists without an elaborate aquarium equipment. These little fish look after their offspring very carefully, so various displays of parent care can be observed., and Jaroslav Eliáš.