The Experts below are selected from a list of 3024 Experts worldwide ranked by ideXlab platform
Neil Reid - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Expertly Validated Models and Phylogenetically-Controlled Analysis Suggests Responses to Climate Change Are Related to Species Traits in the Order Lagomorpha
PloS one, 2015Co-Authors: Katie Leach, Ruth Kelly, Alison Cameron, W. Ian Montgomery, Neil ReidAbstract:Climate change during the past five decades has impacted significantly on natural ecosystems, and the rate of current climate change is of great concern among conservation biologists. Species Distribution Models (SDMs) have been used widely to project changes in species’ bioclimatic envelopes under future climate scenarios. Here, we aimed to advance this technique by assessing future changes in the bioclimatic envelopes of an entire mammalian order, the Lagomorpha, using a novel framework for model validation based jointly on subjective expert evaluation and objective model evaluation statistics. SDMs were built using climatic, topographical, and habitat variables for all 87 lagomorph species under past and current climate scenarios. Expert evaluation and Kappa values were used to validate past and current models and only those deemed ‘modellable’ within our framework were projected under future climate scenarios (58 species). Phylogenetically-controlled regressions were used to test whether species traits correlated with predicted responses to climate change. Climate change is likely to impact more than two-thirds of lagomorph species, with leporids (rabbits, hares, and jackrabbits) likely to undertake poleward shifts with little overall change in range extent, whilst pikas are likely to show extreme shifts to higher altitudes associated with marked range declines, including the likely extinction of Kozlov’s Pika (Ochotona koslowi). Smaller-bodied species were more likely to exhibit range contractions and elevational increases, but showing little poleward movement, and fecund species were more likely to shift latitudinally and elevationally. Our results suggest that species traits may be important indicators of future climate change and we believe multi-species approaches, as demonstrated here, are likely to lead to more effective mitigation measures and conservation management. We strongly advocate studies minimising data gaps in our knowledge of the Order, specifically collecting more specimens for biodiversity archives and targeting data deficient geographic regions.
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Biogeography, macroecology and species' traits mediate competitive interactions in the order Lagomorpha
Mammal Review, 2015Co-Authors: Katie Leach, W. Ian Montgomery, Neil ReidAbstract:In addition to abiotic determinants, biotic factors, including competitive, inter- specific interactions, limit species' distributions. Environmental changes in human disturbance, land use and climate are predicted to have widespread impacts on interactions between species, especially in the order Lagomorpha due to the higher latitudes and more extreme environmental conditions they occupy. 2. We reviewed the published literature on interspecific interactions in the order Lagomorpha and compared the biogeography, macroecology, phylogeny and traits of species known to interact with those of species with no reported interactions, to investigate how projected future environmental change may affect interactions and potentially alter species' distributions. 3. Thirty-three lagomorph species have competitive interactions reported in the literature; the majority involve hares (Lepus sp.) or the eastern cottontail rabbit (Sylvilagus floridanus). Key regions for interactions are located between 30-50°N of the Equator, and include eastern Asia (southern Russia on the border of Mongolia) and North America (north-western USA). 4. Closely related, large-bodied, similarly sized species occurring in regions of human-modified, typically agricultural landscapes, or at high elevations, are sig- nificantly more likely to have reported competitive interactions than other lago- morph species. 5. We identify species' traits associated with competitive interactions, and high- light some potential impacts that future environmental change may have on inter- specific interactions. Our approach using bibliometric and biological data is widely applicable, and with relatively straightforward methodologies, can provide insights into interactions between species. 6. Our results have implications for predicting species' responses to global change, and we advise that capturing, parameterizing and incorporating interspe- cific interactions into analyses (e.g. species distribution modelling) may be more important than suggested by the literature.
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Response to climate change is related to species traits in the Lagomorpha
2014Co-Authors: Katie Leach, Ruth Kelly, Alison Cameron, W. Ian Montgomery, Neil ReidAbstract:Climate change during the last five decades has impacted on natural systems significantly and the rate of current climate change is of great concern among conservation biologists. Here, we assess the projected change in the bioclimatic envelopes of all 87 species in the mammalian order Lagomorpha under future climate using expertly validated species distribution models. Results suggest that climate change will impact more than two-thirds of Lagomorphs, with leporids (rabbits, hares and jackrabbits) likely to undertake poleward shifts with little overall change in range extent, whilst pikas are likely to show extreme shifts to higher altitudes associated with marked range declines, including the likely extinction of Kozlovs Pika (Ochotona koslowi). Species traits were associated with predictions of change, with smaller-bodied species more likely to exhibit range contractions and elevational increases, but showing little poleward movement. Lagomorphs vulnerable to climate change require urgent conservation management to mitigate range declines and/or extinctions.
łucja Fostowiczfrelik - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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cranial endocast of the stem lagomorph megalagus and brain structure of basal euarchontoglires
Proceedings of The Royal Society B: Biological Sciences, 2020Co-Authors: Sergi Lopeztorres, Ornella C Bertrand, Madlen M Lang, Mary T Silcox, łucja FostowiczfrelikAbstract:Early lagomorphs are central to our understanding of how the brain evolved in Glires (rodents, lagomorphs and their kin) from basal members of Euarchontoglires (Glires + Euarchonta, the latter grouping primates, treeshrews, and colugos). Here, we report the first virtual endocast of the fossil lagomorph Megalagus turgidus, from the Orella Member of the Brule Formation, early Oligocene, Nebraska, USA. The specimen represents one of the oldest nearly complete lagomorph skulls known. Primitive aspects of the endocranial morphology in Megalagus include large olfactory bulbs, exposure of the midbrain, a small neocortex and a relatively low encephalization quotient. Overall, this suggests a brain morphology closer to that of other basal members of Euarchontoglires (e.g. plesiadapiforms and ischyromyid rodents) than to that of living lagomorphs. However, the well-developed petrosal lobules in Megalagus, comparable to the condition in modern lagomorphs, suggest early specialization in that order for the stabilization of eye movements necessary for accurate visual tracking. Our study sheds new light on the reconstructed morphology of the ancestral brain in Euarchontoglires and fills a critical gap in the understanding of palaeoneuroanatomy of this major group of placental mammals.
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reassessment of chadrolagus and litolagus mammalia Lagomorpha and a new genus of north american eocene lagomorph from wyoming
American Museum Novitates, 2013Co-Authors: łucja FostowiczfrelikAbstract:ABSTRACT Lagomorphs from the late Eocene and Eocene-Oligocene transition of North America, apart from the abundant and fairly speciose Palaeolagus, are represented by some rare and enigmatic genera, including monospecific Chadrolagus and Litolagus, of uncertain infraordinal relationship. In this paper new specimens of lagomorphs from the Chadronian and Orellan of Montana and Wyoming are presented. They include Chadrolagus emryi from the early Chadronian of the Renova Formation, Beaverhead Basin (Montana), and the late Chadronian of the Dunbar Creek and Cook Ranch Formations (Montana), extending the stratigraphic range of this species to the entire Chadronian interval. Further, previously unreported material, originally collected by M.F. Skinner during his fieldwork in Wyoming (near the Chadronian-Orellan boundary in age), is described and figured. This includes an exquisitely preserved skull of Litolagus molidens, and Limitolagus roosevelti, gen. et sp. nov., represented by mandibular and dental material ...
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leporids mammalia Lagomorpha from the diamond o ranch local fauna latest middle eocene of southwestern montana
Annals of Carnegie Museum, 2009Co-Authors: łucja Fostowiczfrelik, Alan R TabrumAbstract:ABSTRACT Two species of lagomorphs are represented in the Diamond O Ranch local fauna of southwestern Montana. Mytonolagus ashcrafti, new species, is the most common mammal at Diamond O Ranch, and is comparable in evolutionary grade to Mytonolagus wyomingensis Wood, 1949, and more advanced than either Mytonolagus petersoni Burke, 1934, or Mytonolagus near M. petersoni. A second species of lagomorph is represented by only a few specimens from near the base of the Diamond O Ranch section. The teeth of this form tentatively assigned to Palaeolagus Leidy, 1856, are significantly more hypsodont than those of M. ashcrafti. The Diamond O Ranch local fauna falls very near the Duchesnean—Chadronian boundary in one of the most poorly documented temporal intervals during the entire Cenozoic of North America.
Katie Leach - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Expertly Validated Models and Phylogenetically-Controlled Analysis Suggests Responses to Climate Change Are Related to Species Traits in the Order Lagomorpha
PloS one, 2015Co-Authors: Katie Leach, Ruth Kelly, Alison Cameron, W. Ian Montgomery, Neil ReidAbstract:Climate change during the past five decades has impacted significantly on natural ecosystems, and the rate of current climate change is of great concern among conservation biologists. Species Distribution Models (SDMs) have been used widely to project changes in species’ bioclimatic envelopes under future climate scenarios. Here, we aimed to advance this technique by assessing future changes in the bioclimatic envelopes of an entire mammalian order, the Lagomorpha, using a novel framework for model validation based jointly on subjective expert evaluation and objective model evaluation statistics. SDMs were built using climatic, topographical, and habitat variables for all 87 lagomorph species under past and current climate scenarios. Expert evaluation and Kappa values were used to validate past and current models and only those deemed ‘modellable’ within our framework were projected under future climate scenarios (58 species). Phylogenetically-controlled regressions were used to test whether species traits correlated with predicted responses to climate change. Climate change is likely to impact more than two-thirds of lagomorph species, with leporids (rabbits, hares, and jackrabbits) likely to undertake poleward shifts with little overall change in range extent, whilst pikas are likely to show extreme shifts to higher altitudes associated with marked range declines, including the likely extinction of Kozlov’s Pika (Ochotona koslowi). Smaller-bodied species were more likely to exhibit range contractions and elevational increases, but showing little poleward movement, and fecund species were more likely to shift latitudinally and elevationally. Our results suggest that species traits may be important indicators of future climate change and we believe multi-species approaches, as demonstrated here, are likely to lead to more effective mitigation measures and conservation management. We strongly advocate studies minimising data gaps in our knowledge of the Order, specifically collecting more specimens for biodiversity archives and targeting data deficient geographic regions.
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Biogeography, macroecology and species' traits mediate competitive interactions in the order Lagomorpha
Mammal Review, 2015Co-Authors: Katie Leach, W. Ian Montgomery, Neil ReidAbstract:In addition to abiotic determinants, biotic factors, including competitive, inter- specific interactions, limit species' distributions. Environmental changes in human disturbance, land use and climate are predicted to have widespread impacts on interactions between species, especially in the order Lagomorpha due to the higher latitudes and more extreme environmental conditions they occupy. 2. We reviewed the published literature on interspecific interactions in the order Lagomorpha and compared the biogeography, macroecology, phylogeny and traits of species known to interact with those of species with no reported interactions, to investigate how projected future environmental change may affect interactions and potentially alter species' distributions. 3. Thirty-three lagomorph species have competitive interactions reported in the literature; the majority involve hares (Lepus sp.) or the eastern cottontail rabbit (Sylvilagus floridanus). Key regions for interactions are located between 30-50°N of the Equator, and include eastern Asia (southern Russia on the border of Mongolia) and North America (north-western USA). 4. Closely related, large-bodied, similarly sized species occurring in regions of human-modified, typically agricultural landscapes, or at high elevations, are sig- nificantly more likely to have reported competitive interactions than other lago- morph species. 5. We identify species' traits associated with competitive interactions, and high- light some potential impacts that future environmental change may have on inter- specific interactions. Our approach using bibliometric and biological data is widely applicable, and with relatively straightforward methodologies, can provide insights into interactions between species. 6. Our results have implications for predicting species' responses to global change, and we advise that capturing, parameterizing and incorporating interspe- cific interactions into analyses (e.g. species distribution modelling) may be more important than suggested by the literature.
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Response to climate change is related to species traits in the Lagomorpha
2014Co-Authors: Katie Leach, Ruth Kelly, Alison Cameron, W. Ian Montgomery, Neil ReidAbstract:Climate change during the last five decades has impacted on natural systems significantly and the rate of current climate change is of great concern among conservation biologists. Here, we assess the projected change in the bioclimatic envelopes of all 87 species in the mammalian order Lagomorpha under future climate using expertly validated species distribution models. Results suggest that climate change will impact more than two-thirds of Lagomorphs, with leporids (rabbits, hares and jackrabbits) likely to undertake poleward shifts with little overall change in range extent, whilst pikas are likely to show extreme shifts to higher altitudes associated with marked range declines, including the likely extinction of Kozlovs Pika (Ochotona koslowi). Species traits were associated with predictions of change, with smaller-bodied species more likely to exhibit range contractions and elevational increases, but showing little poleward movement. Lagomorphs vulnerable to climate change require urgent conservation management to mitigate range declines and/or extinctions.
Ana Pinheiro - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Not so unique to Primates: The independent adaptive evolution of TRIM5 in Lagomorpha lineage.
PloS one, 2019Co-Authors: Ana Águeda-pinto, Fabiana Neves, Ana Pinheiro, Ana Lemos De Matos, Patricia De Sousa-pereira, Pedro J. EstevesAbstract:The plethora of restriction factors with the ability to inhibit the replication of retroviruses have been widely studied and genetic hallmarks of evolutionary selective pressures in Primates have been well documented. One example is the tripartite motif-containing protein 5 alpha (TRIM5α), a cytoplasmic factor that restricts retroviral infection in a species-specific fashion. In Lagomorphs, similarly to what has been observed in Primates, the specificity of TRIM5 restriction has been assigned to the PRYSPRY domain. In this study, we present the first insight of an intra-genus variability within the Lagomorpha TRIM5 PRYSPRY domain. Remarkably, and considering just the 32 residue-long v1 region of this domain, the deduced amino acid sequences of Daurian pika (Ochotona dauurica) and steppe pika (O. pusilla) evidenced a high divergence when compared to the remaining Ochotona species, presenting values of 44% and 66% of amino acid differences, respectively. The same evolutionary pattern was also observed when comparing the v1 region of two Sylvilagus species members (47% divergence). However, and unexpectedly, the PRYSPRY domain of Lepus species exhibited a great conservation. Our results show a high level of variation in the PRYSPRY domain of Lagomorpha species that belong to the same genus. This suggests that, throughout evolution, the Lagomorpha TRIM5 should have been influenced by constant selective pressures, likely as a result of multiple different retroviral infections.
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Strong selection of the TLR2 coding region among the Lagomorpha suggests an evolutionary history that differs from other mammals
Immunogenetics, 2019Co-Authors: Fabiana Neves, Ana Pinheiro, Joana Abrantes, Ana Águeda-pinto, Pedro J. EstevesAbstract:Toll-like receptors (TLRs) are one of the first lines of defense against pathogens and are crucial for triggering an appropriate immune response. Among TLRs , TLR2 is functional in all vertebrates and has high ability in detecting bacterial and viral pathogen ligands. The mammals’ phylogenetic tree of TLR2 showed longer branches for the Lagomorpha clade, raising the hypothesis that lagomorphs experienced an acceleration of the mutation rate. This hypothesis was confirmed by (i) Tajima’s test of neutrality that revealed different evolutionary rates between lagomorphs and the remaining mammals with lagomorphs presenting higher nucleotide diversity; (ii) genetic distances were similar among lagomorphs and between lagomorphs and other mammals; and (iii) branch models reinforced the existence of an acceleration of the mutation rate in lagomorphs. These results suggest that the lagomorph TLR2 has been strongly involved in pathogen recognition, which probably caused a host-pathogen arms race that led to the observed acceleration of the mutation rate.
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An overview of the lagomorph immune system and its genetic diversity
Immunogenetics, 2016Co-Authors: Ana Pinheiro, Ana Lemos De Matos, Wessel Van Der Loo, Rose Mage, Fabiana Neves, Joana Abrantes, Pedro José EstevesAbstract:Our knowledge of the lagomorph immune system remains largely based upon studies of the European rabbit ( Oryctolagus cuniculus ), a major model for studies of immunology. Two important and devastating viral diseases, rabbit hemorrhagic disease and myxomatosis, are affecting European rabbit populations. In this context, we discuss the genetic diversity of the European rabbit immune system and extend to available information about other lagomorphs. Regarding innate immunity, we review the most recent advances in identifying interleukins, chemokines and chemokine receptors, Toll-like receptors, antiviral proteins (RIG-I and Trim5), and the genes encoding fucosyltransferases that are utilized by rabbit hemorrhagic disease virus as a portal for invading host respiratory and gut epithelial cells. Evolutionary studies showed that several genes of innate immunity are evolving by strong natural selection. Studies of the leporid CCR5 gene revealed a very dramatic change unique in mammals at the second extracellular loop of CCR5 resulting from a gene conversion event with the paralogous CCR2. For the adaptive immune system, we review genetic diversity at the loci encoding antibody variable and constant regions, the major histocompatibility complex (RLA) and T cells. Studies of IGHV and IGKC genes expressed in leporids are two of the few examples of trans-species polymorphism observed outside of the major histocompatibility complex. In addition, we review some endogenous viruses of lagomorph genomes, the importance of the European rabbit as a model for human disease studies, and the anticipated role of next-generation sequencing in extending knowledge of lagomorph immune systems and their evolution.
W. Ian Montgomery - One of the best experts on this subject based on the ideXlab platform.
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Expertly Validated Models and Phylogenetically-Controlled Analysis Suggests Responses to Climate Change Are Related to Species Traits in the Order Lagomorpha
PloS one, 2015Co-Authors: Katie Leach, Ruth Kelly, Alison Cameron, W. Ian Montgomery, Neil ReidAbstract:Climate change during the past five decades has impacted significantly on natural ecosystems, and the rate of current climate change is of great concern among conservation biologists. Species Distribution Models (SDMs) have been used widely to project changes in species’ bioclimatic envelopes under future climate scenarios. Here, we aimed to advance this technique by assessing future changes in the bioclimatic envelopes of an entire mammalian order, the Lagomorpha, using a novel framework for model validation based jointly on subjective expert evaluation and objective model evaluation statistics. SDMs were built using climatic, topographical, and habitat variables for all 87 lagomorph species under past and current climate scenarios. Expert evaluation and Kappa values were used to validate past and current models and only those deemed ‘modellable’ within our framework were projected under future climate scenarios (58 species). Phylogenetically-controlled regressions were used to test whether species traits correlated with predicted responses to climate change. Climate change is likely to impact more than two-thirds of lagomorph species, with leporids (rabbits, hares, and jackrabbits) likely to undertake poleward shifts with little overall change in range extent, whilst pikas are likely to show extreme shifts to higher altitudes associated with marked range declines, including the likely extinction of Kozlov’s Pika (Ochotona koslowi). Smaller-bodied species were more likely to exhibit range contractions and elevational increases, but showing little poleward movement, and fecund species were more likely to shift latitudinally and elevationally. Our results suggest that species traits may be important indicators of future climate change and we believe multi-species approaches, as demonstrated here, are likely to lead to more effective mitigation measures and conservation management. We strongly advocate studies minimising data gaps in our knowledge of the Order, specifically collecting more specimens for biodiversity archives and targeting data deficient geographic regions.
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Biogeography, macroecology and species' traits mediate competitive interactions in the order Lagomorpha
Mammal Review, 2015Co-Authors: Katie Leach, W. Ian Montgomery, Neil ReidAbstract:In addition to abiotic determinants, biotic factors, including competitive, inter- specific interactions, limit species' distributions. Environmental changes in human disturbance, land use and climate are predicted to have widespread impacts on interactions between species, especially in the order Lagomorpha due to the higher latitudes and more extreme environmental conditions they occupy. 2. We reviewed the published literature on interspecific interactions in the order Lagomorpha and compared the biogeography, macroecology, phylogeny and traits of species known to interact with those of species with no reported interactions, to investigate how projected future environmental change may affect interactions and potentially alter species' distributions. 3. Thirty-three lagomorph species have competitive interactions reported in the literature; the majority involve hares (Lepus sp.) or the eastern cottontail rabbit (Sylvilagus floridanus). Key regions for interactions are located between 30-50°N of the Equator, and include eastern Asia (southern Russia on the border of Mongolia) and North America (north-western USA). 4. Closely related, large-bodied, similarly sized species occurring in regions of human-modified, typically agricultural landscapes, or at high elevations, are sig- nificantly more likely to have reported competitive interactions than other lago- morph species. 5. We identify species' traits associated with competitive interactions, and high- light some potential impacts that future environmental change may have on inter- specific interactions. Our approach using bibliometric and biological data is widely applicable, and with relatively straightforward methodologies, can provide insights into interactions between species. 6. Our results have implications for predicting species' responses to global change, and we advise that capturing, parameterizing and incorporating interspe- cific interactions into analyses (e.g. species distribution modelling) may be more important than suggested by the literature.
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Response to climate change is related to species traits in the Lagomorpha
2014Co-Authors: Katie Leach, Ruth Kelly, Alison Cameron, W. Ian Montgomery, Neil ReidAbstract:Climate change during the last five decades has impacted on natural systems significantly and the rate of current climate change is of great concern among conservation biologists. Here, we assess the projected change in the bioclimatic envelopes of all 87 species in the mammalian order Lagomorpha under future climate using expertly validated species distribution models. Results suggest that climate change will impact more than two-thirds of Lagomorphs, with leporids (rabbits, hares and jackrabbits) likely to undertake poleward shifts with little overall change in range extent, whilst pikas are likely to show extreme shifts to higher altitudes associated with marked range declines, including the likely extinction of Kozlovs Pika (Ochotona koslowi). Species traits were associated with predictions of change, with smaller-bodied species more likely to exhibit range contractions and elevational increases, but showing little poleward movement. Lagomorphs vulnerable to climate change require urgent conservation management to mitigate range declines and/or extinctions.
