Feeding ecology of rock pigeons

West Nile Virus Viremia in Wild Rock Pigeons

Feral rock pigeons were screened for neutralizing antibodies to West Nile virus (WNV) during late winter/spring and summer of 2002 and 2003. Additionally, virus isolation from serum was attempted from 269 birds collected during peak transmission periods. The observed viremia levels and seroprevalence indicate that this species could be involved in amplifying WNV in urban settings.

Feeding ecology of North American gopher snakes

Studies of food relations are important to our understanding of ecology at the individual, population and community levels. Detailed documentation of the diet of large-bodied, widespread snakes allows us to assess size-dependent and geographical variation in feeding preferences of gape-limited predators. Furthermore, with knowledge of the food habits of sympatric taxa we can explore possible ca...

Behavior and Ecology of Rock Iguanas, II POPULATION DIFFERENCES

Behavioural genetics: Molecular genetics meets feeding ecology

Fruit fly larvae occur as either 'rovers', which move a long way to find food, or 'sitters', which stay within a more restricted area. This polymorphism is determined by alleles of a cyclic GMP-dependent protein kinase gene; rovers are at an advantage in crowded populations, while sitters have the edge at low population density.

Brown hyaena feeding ecology on Namibian farmlands

We identified the diet of brown hyaenas (Hyaena brunnea) on the farmlands of north-central Namibia based on scat analysis, den site orts, and evidence of scavenging at leopard (Panthera pardus) kills. In the absence of larger carnivores, which have been credited with providing larger food items for brown hyaenas elsewhere, we compared interspecific dietary overlap and activity patterns with the...