Evolutionary studies on Maniola jurtina in sicily

Non-random dispersal in the butter y Maniola jurtina: implications for metapopulation models

The dispersal patterns of animals are important in metapopulation ecology because they a¡ect the dynamics and survival of populations.Theoretical models assume random dispersal but little is known in practice about the dispersal behaviour of individual animals or the strategy by which dispersers locate distant habitat patches. In the present study, we released individual meadow brown butter£ies...

Non-random dispersal in the butterfly Maniola jurtina: implications for metapopulation models.

The dispersal patterns of animals are important in metapopulation ecology because they affect the dynamics and survival of populations. Theoretical models assume random dispersal but little is known in practice about the dispersal behaviour of individual animals or the strategy by which dispersers locate distant habitat patches. In the present study, we released individual meadow brown butterfl...

Butterfly Density and Behaviour in Uncut Hay Meadow Strips: Behavioural Ecological Consequences of an Agri-Environmental Scheme

Sparing zones from mowing has been proposed, and applied, to improve local conditions for survival and reproduction of insects in hay meadows. However, little is known about the efficiency of refuge zones and the consequences for local populations. We studied population densities of butterflies before and after mowing in the refuge zone of 15 meadows in 2009 and 2011. We also studied the behavi...

Studies in Evolutionary Algorithms

A Note on Evolutionary Rate Estimation in Bayesian Evolutionary Analysis: Focus on Pathogens

Bayesian evolutionary analysis provide a statistically sound and flexible framework for estimation of evolutionary parameters. In this method, posterior estimates of evolutionary rate (μ) are derived by combining evolutionary information in the data with researcher’s prior knowledge about the true value of μ. Nucleotide sequence samples of fast evolving pathogens that are taken at d...