R. Manenti, R. Pennati and G. F. Ficetola. Journal of Zoology. 2015. Intraspecific aggression is an important aspect of social behaviour that can significantly affect individual survivorship and population dynamics. Aggressiveness may be particularly important in food-deprived habitats, like caves, but few studies have investigated behavioural and ecological determinants of aggressiveness and cannibalism in cave vertebrates. Leer más.

We used a multidisciplinary approach to infer the taxonomy and historical biogeography of Hierophis viridiflavus and H. gemonensis, performing molecular analyses of mitochondrial (16S, Cyt-b, ND4) and nuclear markers (PRLR), a landmark-based morphometric study and a cytogenetic analysis. Leer más.

Mario Garrido, Valentín Pérez-Mellado. European Journal of Wildlife Research. April 2015. Many wild populations of lizards in the Mediterranean Basin inhabit small islands frequently visited by humans. Reptiles respond to humans as potential predators by escaping to refuges or by increasing antipredator behaviours which lead to a loss of body condition and may have important consequences for fitness. Leer más.

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a chemical used in food storage products and resins that line plastic beverage containers. Often, aquatic environments become reservoirs for BPA, and turtle habitats are affected. Now, a collaboration of researchers has determined that BPA can alter a turtle’s sexual differentiation. Leer más.