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Not 1 year has passed since the emergence of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2), the causative agent of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19). Since its emergence, great uncertainty has surrounded the potential for COVID-19 to establish as a seasonally recurrent disease. Many infectious diseases, including endemic human coronaviruses, vary across the year. They show a wide range of seasonal waveforms, timing (phase), and amplitudes, which differ depending on the geographical region. Drivers of such patterns are predominantly studied from an epidemiological perspective with a focus on weather and behavior, but complementary insights emerge from physiological studies of seasonality in animals, including humans. Thus, we take a multidisciplinary approach to integrate knowledge from usually distinct fields. First, we review epidemiological evidence of environmental and behavioral drivers of infectious disease seasonality. Subsequently, we take a chronobiological perspective and discuss within-host changes that may affect susceptibility, morbidity, and mortality from infectious diseases. Based on photoperiodic, circannual, and comparative human data, we not only identify promising future avenues but also highlight the need for further studies in animal models. Our preliminary assessment is that host immune seasonality warrants evaluation alongside weather and human behavior as factors that may contribute to COVID-19 seasonality, and that the relative importance of these drivers requires further investigation. A major challenge to predicting seasonality of infectious diseases are rapid, human-induced changes in the hitherto predictable seasonality of our planet, whose influence we review in a final outlook section. We conclude that a proactive multidisciplinary approach is warranted to predict, mitigate, and prevent seasonal infectious diseases in our complex, changing human-earth system.

Populations at the warm edge of distribution are more genetically diverse, and at the same time are more susceptible to climate change. Between 1987-1996, we studied Tawny Owls in Israel, the species' global southern edge of distribution and a country undergoing a rapid land cover transformation for over a century. To assess the potential impacts of land cover transformation, we modelled the species' most suitable habitat and climate and analyzed how climate and habitat affected the nesting success and prey selection. Moreover, we monitored Tawny Owl juveniles' survival and ontogeny from eggs to dietary independent young, to find out whether the Israeli population is a sink. While the species distribution model correctly predicted the Tawny Owl's densest areas of occurrence, it failed to predict its occurrence in adjacent regions. The model also predicted that areas included in the species' historical range remained suitable habitats. The number of fledglings increased with precipitation and in rural settings but was adversely affected by extreme temperatures. While voles dominated the diet in all habitats, the Tawny Owl's diet is considerably more variable than other Israeli owls. Our results suggest that the Tawny Owl can adapt to rural-agricultural environments, but is susceptible to climate change.

While bioinvasion was an issue of low political salience in Europe, a new regulation addressing it was adopted in 2014 with strong support. This article analyzes the making of the regulation as an ...

Populations at the warm edge of distribution are more genetically diverse, and at the same time are more susceptible to climate change. Between 1987–1996, we studied Tawny Owls in Israel, the species’ global southern edge of distribution and a country undergoing a rapid land cover transformation for over a century. To assess the potential impacts of land cover transformation, we modelled the species’ most suitable habitat and climate and analyzed how climate and habitat affected the nesting success and prey selection. Moreover, we monitored Tawny Owl juveniles’ survival and ontogeny from eggs to dietary independent young, to find out whether the Israeli population is a sink. While the species distribution model correctly predicted the Tawny Owl’s densest areas of occurrence, it failed to predict its occurrence in adjacent regions. The model also predicted that areas included in the species’ historical range remained suitable habitats. The number of fledglings increased with precipitation and in rural settings but was adversely affected by extreme temperatures. While voles dominated the diet in all habitats, the Tawny Owl’s diet is considerably more variable than other Israeli owls. Our results suggest that the Tawny Owl can adapt to rural-agricultural environments, but is susceptible to climate change.

Landscape conversion to agriculture is the primary cause for habitat loss worldwide. As partial mitigation, agricultural landscapes may be designated as ecological corridors due to their presumed habitability and permeability to wildlife. Behavioral changes following anthropogenic disturbance can affect species' spatio-temporal activity patterns and modify interactions, and thus influence habitat preferences. Understanding how human activity affects wildlife behavior and how such behavioral changes scale up to the community may enhance the effectiveness of conservation schemes. We used camera traps to measure the activity of five mammal species along a disturbance gradient in an agricultural-natural mosaic landscape designated as a national ecological corridor. Wildlife diurnal activity was minimal around towns, where humans were active during the day. Nevertheless, predator activity increased near towns and at other sites of high disturbance. Although attracted to highly disturbed areas, predators avoided humans temporally by restricting activity to night-time, whereas prey activity relative to less disturbed areas was negligible. We conclude that perceived threat from humans during daytime combined with elevated nocturnal predation risk exclude prey species from large areas of an agricultural region designated as ecological corridor. Human activity may have triggered a cascading effect mediated by predators' diel activity shifts, which reduced landscape permeability to prey. Our study underlines the need to consider wildlife diel activity patterns for conservation and environmental management planning.

Many factors affect individual fitness, but while some factors, such as resource availability, have received strong experimental support, others including interspecific competition have rarely been quantified. Nevertheless, interspecific competition is commonly mentioned in the context of reproductive success and fitness. In general, when reproduction is likely to fail, reproductive suppression may occur. We studied the golden spiny mouse (Acomys russatus) and the common spiny mouse (A. cahirinus; however, recent molecular analysis in spiny mice from Jordan and Sinai suggests this species is A. dimidiatus (Frynta et al., 2010), as a model for the effect of competition on reproduction in four field enclosures: two populated only by A. russatus individuals, and two populated by individuals of both species. In presence of A. cahirinus, fitness of A. russatus was lower: the number of A. rusatus offspring was significantly lower; more males had regressed testes (indicating reproductive depression); more A. russatus young had damaged tails. However, no clear effect was evident in A. russatus female vaginal smear cytology. We conclude that the presence of A. cahirinus impairs fitness and reproductive success of A. russatus. While various direct and/or indirect mechanisms may be responsible for the effect of competition on reproduction, a plausible mechanism is increased use of torpor induced by the presence of A. cahirinus previously documented in A. russatus.

Paleoenvironmental reconstructions based on micromammalian assemblages are a commonly used tool in paleoecology and zooarcheology. However, predator prey preferences may bias these assemblages to an unknown degree, thus leading to unreliable paleoenvironmental reconstructions. While attempts at taxonomically identifying micromammal predators through taphonomy has been conducted in the past, none has satisfactorily differentiated between owl taxa. Here we introduce the novel postcranial fracture index and revised versions of digestion indices for obtaining higher taxonomic resolution in taphonomic signatures. We taphonomically analyzed bone assemblages created by owls both in controlled feeding experiments and in the wild. We used blind experiment methodology involving multiple experimenters (each analyzing different bones) to test known and novel indices for reproducible taphonomic signatures within five species of owls (Tyto alba, Asio otus, Athene noctua, Bubo bubo and Strix aluco), Falco tinnunculus and Vulpes vulpes for comparison. We found that experimenter identity has a profound impact on the digestion indices. Nonetheless, the breakage indices and our novel fracture index found significant differences and subjective differences between owl species. Mandible breakage differentiated between Tyto alba and the other, more destructive owls. Postcranial breakage distinguished Strix aluco from the other owls. The postcranial fracture index differentiated between all species except between Athene noctua and Bubo bubo. We recommend a combination of taphonomic indices as a reliable tool for inferring owl species identity of micromammal assemblages.

Micromammal assemblages are often used in paleoecological reconstructions. However, in studies to date, the environmental variables reconstructed were not shown to drive micromammal community structure before the reconstruction was attempted. Furthermore, the relative abundance data is too often dismissed despite its potential paleoecological value. Here we chose to reconstruct the botanical succession stage known to impact micromammal communities in the Mediterranean zone of Israel. We used weighted averaging partial least squares (WAPLS) regression to model the connection between botanical succession phase and the micromammal faunas as reflected in Tyto alba pellets. In addition to cross-validation, we validated our model using historical T. alba pellet data and contemporary maps. Moreover, we tested the repercussions of misidentifying the owl species in archaeological micromammal assemblages by applying our model to Recent assemblages collected by other owl species. Our WAPLS model differentiated forested environments from garrigue or grassland dominated ones in both the cross-validation and in the reconstructed historical environments. However, urban environments were not well distinguished from grasslands and garrigues, and misidentifying the owl species severely compromised model performance. Our results stress the potential insight deducible from micromammal relative abundance data, given its reliance on empirically tested relationships between fauna, environment, and taphonomic agent (predator).

Frequently, Mediterranean natural and semi-natural areas will undergo cattle grazing as a form of fire fuel reduction management. We used a multi-species approach to understand effects of cattle grazing on mountain gazelle (Gazella gazella) in relation to 2 potential predators of gazelle neonates: golden jackal (Canis aureus) and wild boar (Sus scrofa). We used light detection and ranging (LiDAR) data and a fine-scale camera trap design (0.01-km2 grid) in Ramat Hanadiv Nature Park in the Mediterranean region of Israel to determine gazelle habitat and patch preferences in response to grazing using N-mixture models. Cattle grazing decreased female gazelle detectability and activity and attracted potential predators during the most sensitive time of the year for gazelle: parturition and the critical first 5 weeks of fawns' lives. Grazing management acts as a disturbance for gazelles and increases risk for neonates. Our results show the importance of understanding the broader mechanism behind predator–prey dynamics and how indirect human-mediated management actions and direct predation may have adverse effects on wild populations. We recommend that cattle be allowed to enter natural areas only after the spring birth peak. © 2017 The Wildlife Society.

Background In recent decates, a decrease of passerine densities was documented in Mediterenean shrublands. At the same time, a widspread encroachment of Aleppo pines (Pinus halepensis) to Mediterranean shrubland occurred. Such changes in vegetation structure may effect passerine predator assemblage and densities, and in turn impact passerine densities. Depredation during the nesting season is an important factor to influence passerine population size. Understanding the effects of changes in vegetation structure (pine encroachment) on passerine nesting success is the main objective of this study. We do so by assesing the effects of Aleppo pine encroachment on Sardinian warbler (Sylvia melanocephala) nest depredation in Mediterranean shrublands. Methods We examined direct and indirect predation pressures throught a gradients of pine density, using four methods: (1) placing dummy nests; (2) acoustic monitoring of mobbing events; (3) direct observations on nest predation using cameras; and (4) observation of Eurasian jay (Garrulus glandarius) behaviour as indirect evidence of predation risk. Results We found that Aleppo pine encroachment to Mediterranean shrublands increased nest predation by Eurasian jays. Nest predation was highest in with median encroaching pine. These areas are suitable for warblers, but had high occurrence rate of Eurasian jays. Conclusions Invasive pines directly increase activity of avian predators in shrubland habitats which impacted shrubland songbird nesting success. These findings are supported by multiple methodologies, illustrating different predation pressures along a gradient of pine densities in natural shrublands. Management of Aleppo pine seedlings and removal of unwanted trees in natural shrubland might mitigate arrival and expansion of native-invasive predators and decrease the predation pressure on passerine nests.

Agriculture is a major driver of the ongoing biodiversity decline, demanding an urgent transition towards a system that reconciles productivity and profitability with nature conservation; however, where public policies promoting such transitions are in place, their design often poorly fits the relevant biogeophysical systems, decreasing the policies’ expected effectiveness. Spatial scale mismatches are a primary example in this regard. The literature reviewed in this paper, drawing from both ecology and policy studies, suggests to foster policy implementation at the landscape scale, where most functional ecological processes—and the delivery of related ecosystem services—occur on farmland. Two strategies are identified for coordinating policy implementation at the landscape scale: the promotion of farmers’ collective action and the partition of space on an ecologically sound basis through spatial planning. As the new European Union Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) post-2023 is currently being defined, we assess if and how the draft agri-biodiversity legislation includes any of the strategies above. We find no comprehensive uptake of the landscape-scale perspective at the EU level, thereby suggesting that a powerful tool to overcome the CAP underperformance on biodiversity is being overlooked.

The structure of an ecological community is shaped by diverse factors and processes, including competition for resources between species with similar ecological niches. Species coexistence in the face of competition is achieved by various mechanisms, such as niche partitioning, e.g. division of resources in space and time. We studied the effect of environmental variables on activity-density of the four lycosid species found in a Mediterranean shrubland in Israel, in the spring of 2012. We tested if spatial and temporal niche partitioning enables coexistence among the four ecologically similar lycosid spiders, using multivariate analyses (RDA, Species Response Curves and Trait Analysis (RLQ)) of vegetation structure, habitat characteristics and land use, as well as time in the season. Activity-density was significantly affected by time in the season and the interaction of time and geophyte density. These findings provide first insights into the life cycles of lycosid species in Mediterranean shrublands in Israel, with spider species of the same size-group reaching their activity peaks at different times.

Although animals fine-tune their activity to avoid excess heat, we still lack a mechanistic understanding of such behaviors. As the global climate changes, such understanding is particularly important for projecting shifts in the activity patterns of populations and communities. We studied how foraging decisions vary with biotic and abiotic pressures. By tracking the foraging behavior of diurnal desert spiny mice in their natural habitat and estimating the energy and water costs and benefits of foraging, we asked how risk management and thermoregulatory requirements affect foraging decisions. We found that water requirements had the strongest effect on the observed foraging decisions. In their arid environment, mice often lose water while foraging for seeds and cease foraging even at high energetic returns when water loss is high. Mice also foraged more often when energy expenditure was high and for longer times under high seed densities and low predation risks. Gaining insight into both energy and water balance will be crucial to understanding the forces exerted by changing climatic conditions on animal energetics, behavior, and ecology.

This paper describes the micromammalian remains and paleoenvironment of the Upper Paleolithic sequence of Manot Cave (46-34 ka), southern Levant. Micromammal remains were identified from Ahmarian (46-42 ka), Levantine Aurignacian (38-34 ka) and post-Levantine Aurignacian (34-33 ka) layers. To identify taphonomic agents, molar digestion was modelled for seven local raptor species, and model predictions were compared with observed digestion scores in the Manot Cave material. Raptor species differed significantly in molar digestion patterns, allowing us to identify Tyto alba as the bone accumulator in the Ahmarian and Post-Levantine Aurignacian units. Data were insufficient for species-level identification of the taphonomic agent in the Levantine Aurignacian. Gunther's voles (Microtus guentheri) were dominant, though woodland species (Apodemus spp., Sciurus anomalus and Dryomys nitedula) also occurred through the entire sequence. Manot Cave furnished the first fossil record of the Eurasian snow vole (Chionomys nivalis) in the southern Levant during the Late Pleistocene and its first secure record of the water vole (Arvicola terrestris) outside the Hula Valley. Records of other taxa (Acomys dimidiatus and D. nitedula) provide the earliest occurrence datum in the region. Using counts of both identified specimens and distinct elements (lower first molars) we modelled paleoenvironmental conditions through both Weighted Averaging Partial Least Squares regression and a qualitative analysis considering niche preferences of species. Model predictions indicate the unexpectedly pronounced dominance of open habitats compared to present conditions near the cave, though the occurrence and abundance of woodland species also indicate some woodland expansion relative to the preceding Middle Paleolithic period. Combining statistical models and species niche considerations we show that the time span between the Ahmarian, Levantine Aurignacian and post-Levantine Aurignacian was marked by a clear-cut climatic oscillation to cooler and likely wetter conditions.

Fox (1987, p. 201) suggested a new assembly rule for ecological communities: “There is a much higher probability that each species entering a community will be drawn from a different genus (or other taxonomically related group of species with similar diets) until each group is represented, before the rule repeats.” The rule was inspired by a desire to mimic the workings of interspecific competition between similar species. The only input required is an a priori knowledge of how the species are divided into functional groups (Fox 1989, 1999). Finding rules that govern the composition of complex ecological communities is a formidable task, so a rule that requires us to know so little about the species in question is attractive indeed. It means ecologists need not identify habitat preferences, relative abundances, relative dispersal abilities, geographic ranges, and so forth; all species in a functional group are taken as equivalents. In the quest for general rules governing community composition (“assembly rules”), this has the makings of a breakthrough. Desert rodents of southwestern North America are an excellent group on which to test this model because they have been studied intensively and because experimental research shows that at least some species compete (reviewed by Brown and Harney 1993). Fox and Brown (1993) tested this model with two data sets (Nevada Test Site and Chihuahuan Desert) and found these desert rodent communities accorded with Fox’s (1987) rule, with “favored states” found significantly more frequently than would be expected if different species colonized independently. However, when reanalyzing the same data, we (Stone

In this study, we seek to explain a growing divergence between the US and EU regulatory policies over nanotechnology environmental, health, and safety risks. Faced with significant scientific and regulatory uncertainties, incremental approaches have been taken in both regulatory systems, but substantial differences are evident in terms of both policy processes and stringency. While the EU exhibits a regulatory integration process with stringent adjustments of existing legislative frameworks, the US is far less engaged in regulatory adaptations. We have carried out a comparative analysis of the EU and US regulatory policies. We suggest that literature perspectives that focus on differing public attitudes, economic interests, and advocacy pressure groups do not suffice to explain the regulatory policy divergence. We argue that a combined effect of domestic politics and policy styles provides the most powerful explanation of why the US and EU currently differ with respect to their regulatory responses to nanotechnology risks and uncertainties.

This paper explores political drivers and policy processes of the emerging EU’s regulatory policy for nanotechnology risks. Since 2004 the EU has been developing a regulatory policy to tighten control and to improve regulatory adequacy and knowledge of nanotechnology risks. This regulatory evolution is of theoretical interest as well as of policy relevance, addressing the links between risk governance and technological innovation policy in Europe. Although nanotechnology is among the largest EU-regulated industries and a policy domain in which EU regulatory activities continue to grow, political perspective (actors, institutions and processes) remain underexplored. We explored the emergent policy at the EU-level from three theoretical perspectives and a set of derived testable hypotheses concerning the co-evolution of global economic competition, policymakers' preferences and institutional structure. We thus pave the way for developing grounded analytical accounts of this newly-created governance domain. We argue that all three are key drivers shaping the technology regulation policy and each explains some aspect of the policy process: motivation, agenda-setting and decision-making.

This chapter discusses the importance of museum specimens and samples. Natural history collections are archives of biodiversity, snapshots that provide a way to physically retrieve an individual specimen and through it track changes in populations and species across repeatable surveys in time and space. Growing international awareness of the potential effects on humanity due to the loss of biodiversity and the ensuing erosion of ecosystem services has reinforced the value of natural history collections, museums, and herbaria worldwide. The chapter summarizes the strengths and weaknesses of natural history collections for repeated surveys and other historical studies that require replication. Through a case study of the historical surveys and resurveys of the taxonomic exploration of the marine biota of the eastern Mediterranean Sea, it highlights the relevance of collections for ecology and conservation. Finally, it discusses prospects for future uses of natural history collections in the context of replicated research.

Many Mediterranean ecosystems are human-dominated landscapes comprising a mosaic of agricultural, natural and semi-natural habitats alongside urban areas. The size, spatial pattern and connectivity of these “mosaic landscapes” promote changes in wildlife behavior, movement patterns and habitat use. Study how spatiotemporal landscape changes impact the spatial dynamics of a mammalian carnivore guild. We quantified multi-season activity rates/density from camera trap encounters using N-mixture models. One hundred cameras were located at 25 sites, divided into five categories: nature reserve; large natural area; vineyards within natural area; vineyards near settlements; vineyards within the core agricultural matrix. Golden jackals (Canis aureus) were active in anthropogenic modified landscapes. Red foxes (Vulpes vulpes) avoided the core activity areas of jackal during summer and restricted their activity to their peripheries. European badgers (Meles meles) were active in natural patches during winter, but shifted their activity during summer to agricultural fields embedded within natural patches. Feral and wilds cats (Felis silvestris) were highly active in the natural patches during winter and shifted their activity to the agricultural matrix during summer. Intra-guild spatio-temporal activity patterns of carnivores in mosaic landscapes are distinct and unique to each species. The patterns were affected by season, land-use, and jackal activity rates, reflecting inter-specific resource-dependent competitive interactions. The findings highlight the complexity of intra-guild space-use patterns, and shed doubt on the effectiveness of simple solutions to landscape conservation problems.

Most modern mammals, including strictly diurnal species, exhibit sensory adaptations to nocturnal activity that are thought to be the result of a prolonged nocturnal phase or ‘bottleneck’ during early mammalian evolution. Nocturnality may have allowed mammals to avoid antagonistic interactions with diurnal dinosaurs during the Mesozoic. However, understanding the evolution of mammalian activity patterns is hindered by scant and ambiguous fossil evidence. While ancestral reconstructions of behavioural traits from extant species have the potential to elucidate these patterns, existing studies have been limited in taxonomic scope. Here, we use an extensive behavioural dataset for 2,415 species from all extant orders to reconstruct ancestral activity patterns across Mammalia. We find strong support for the nocturnal origin of mammals and the Cenozoic appearance of diurnality, although cathemerality (mixed diel periodicity) may have appeared in the late Cretaceous. Simian primates are among the earliest mammals to exhibit strict diurnal activity, some 52–33 million years ago. Our study is consistent with the hypothesis that temporal partitioning between early mammals and dinosaurs during the Mesozoic led to a mammalian nocturnal bottleneck, but also demonstrates the need for improved phylogenetic estimates for Mammalia. Phylogenetic analysis of behavioural data across all living mammalian orders suggests the earliest mammals were nocturnal, and other modes such as cathemerality and strict diurnality did not arise until the end of the Cretaceous and early Cenozoic.

Two rodent species of the genus Acomys coexist on rocky terrain in the southern deserts of Israel. The common spiny mouse (A. cahirinus) is nocturnally active whereas the golden spiny mouse (A. russatus) is diurnally active. An early removal study suggested that competition accounts for this pattern of temporal partitioning: the golden spiny mouse is forced into diurnal activity by its congener. Theoretically, temporal segregation should facilitate coexistence if the shared limiting resources differ at different times (primarily among predators whose prey populations have activity rhythms), or if they are renewed within the period of the temporal segregation. We studied food preferences of the two Acomys species in a controlled cafeteria experiment in order to assess resource overlap and the potential for competition for food between the two species. We found no significant difference in food preferences between species. The dietary items preferred by both were arthropods. We also carried out a seasonal study of the percentage and identity of arthropods taken in the field by individuals of the two species. Individuals of both species took on annual average a high percentage of arthropods in their diets. Seasonal diet shifts reflect seasonal abundance of arthropods at Ein Gedi during day and night. Diurnal activity may also reduce interspecific interference competition between A. russatus and A. cahirinus. However, the strong interspecific dietary overlap in food preference, the heavy reliance on arthropods in spiny mouse diets, and the seasonal and circadian differences in arthropod consumption suggest that prey partitioning may be a viable mechanism of coexistence in this system.

This paper presents the results of a study of the cultural and economic changes from a longue duree perspective as reflected in the animal remains from a nearly continuous occupation spanning the e...

The soil biota, including soil microorganisms and free-living nematodes, was investigated in the nesting and roosting habitats of the following piscivorous and omnivorous colonial birds: black kite (Milvus migrans), great cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo), black-crowned night heron (Nycticorax nycticorax) and little egret (Egretta garzetta), in Israel’s Mediterranean region. Abiotic variables, abundance, trophic structure, sex ratio and genus diversity of soil free-living nematodes, and total abundance of bacteria and fungi, were measured during the hottest period of 2016. The impact of the birds’ activity on the soil biota was most notable in the upper soil layer and weaker in the lower soil layer. Soil properties such as alkalinity (pH) and conductivity, along with contents of ammonium, nitrate and phosphorus were found to be among the main drivers influencing prey–predator relationships in the observed soil habitat by altering the predation success of soil free-living nematodes. The observed nematode species were affected by the birds’ nesting and roosting activity, as reflected by an increasing proportion of common nematodes and the disappearance of rare species in the colonial birds’ habitats. The applied ecological indices showed that the different species of colonial birds can have different (stimulatory or inhibitory) impacts on the abundance and diversity of the soil biota, affecting the structure of soil free-living nematodes at the generic, trophic and sexual levels. Moreover, the soil ecosystem in the area of bird activity had a less complex food web, but with higher concentrations of nutrients than the uninhabited control area.

This paper explores the growing power of states in transnational regulatory policies for nanotechnology risks and thereby their impact on research and technology trajectories. Decentralization of governance structure has been reported by scholars, yet the role of the state is evolving and still underexplored. We draw on a case study of nanomaterials and chemicals policies, by analyzing recent regulatory developments in the EU and US. Using data-reporting and market-entry regulations as examples, the evidence demonstrates the expansion of state-centric market-oversight rulemaking, and ‘stronger’ patterns of centralization in the EU. We argue for a significant increase in regulatory power exertion, countering predominant views on decentralization as the prevailing governance response. These findings suggest the adaptation and strengthening of state-based regulatory systems in the context of scientific uncertainty and complexity of global nanotechnology settings; despite these challenges for policy making, the EU and the US are increasing government role in technology regulatory policy.

To survive, animals must maintain a balance between energy acquisition (foraging) and energy expenditure. This challenge is particularly great for endotherm vertebrates that require high amounts of energy to maintain homeothermy. Many of these endotherms use hibernation or daily torpor as a mechanism to reduce energy expenditure during anticipated or stochastic periods of stress. Although ecological researchers have focused extensively on energy acquisition, physiologists have largely studied thermal ecology and the mechanisms allowing endotherms to regulate energy expenditure, with little research explicitly linking ecology and thermal biology. Nevertheless, theoretical considerations and research conducted so far point to a significant ecological role for torpor in endotherms. Moreover, global-change challenges facing vertebrate endotherms are also considered in view of their ability to regulate their energy expenditure. We review the thermal ecology of endothermic vertebrates and some of its ecological and evolutionary implications.

We present a zooarchaeological analysis of the faunal remains at Tel Beth-Shemesh, a site located in the Shephelah region of Israel, which has been dated to the Late Bronze Age and Iron Age I. The site, identified as the biblical city of Beth-Shemesh, was a Canaanite border town between Philistine and Israelite settle- ments and of great importance in our attempts to understand the social and cultural transformations that occurred in the southern Levant during those periods. This study contributes to a more accurate understanding of the cultural identity of the site's inhabitants by exploring the cultural differences between populations as reflected in their different dietary preferences. We analysed the subsistence economy at the site, the general exploitation patterns, herd management strategies and consumption practices, all of which are based mostly on domestic livestock. We determined the cultural identity at the site mainly by comparing the representation of pig remains with that found at other sites in the region, and offer various explanations for the differences. The comparisons revealed clear differences between Tel Beth-Shemesh and other known nearby Philistine sites. This site appears to have possessed a self-contained production and consumption economy with similarities in the general pattern of animal exploitation between the two periods. These similarities constitute evidence for the continuation of the local population and of its culture at the site during the period of turmoil that swept the region during the transition to the Iron Age. Copyright © 2013 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Direct diversity measurements usually require more resources and knowledge than those available, so surrogates are needed. The two main types of surrogates are environmental indicators, physical characteristics of the environment, and taxonomic indicators, a taxon or subsets of taxa used to reflect other taxa in the ecosystem. The relative merit of these two surrogate types, though hotly debated, has rarely been investigated directly. Here we compared the relative efficacy of environmental vs. taxonomic indicators in representing local scale patterns of species richness, rarity, endemism, and composition. The study was conducted in the Mediterranean ecosystem of the Jerusalem Mountains and the Judean Foothills, Israel. A detailed study of eight taxa (vascular plants, ground dwelling beetles, moths, spiders, scorpions, diplopods, small mammals, and small reptiles) and of coarse-resolution habitat types and fine-resolution environmental indicators was conducted in 40, 1000 m 2 plots representing the different habitats in the region. Fine-resolution environmental indicators generally outperformed taxonomic indicators in reflecting diversity patterns, but their performance varied considerably between taxa and diversity measures, and on average they conveyed less than 55% of the variation in diversity patterns. Coarse-resolution habitat types failed to reflect diversity patterns. Plant species richness contributed to representation of diversity patterns of some taxa, but it needs to be combined with structural aspects of the vegetation in order to improve prediction power and expand the diversity aspects addressed. Composition patterns were poorly represented by either indicator used. We conclude that fine-resolution environmental indicators are suitable for general indication of local richness, rarity, and endemism patterns in Mediterranean ecosystems. Mapping these patterns at high resolution requires direct detailed surveys, or the application of other indicators.

The complex stratigraphy of the large Levantine tells and the complexity of human behavior that took place on them, poses a major challenge in understanding site formation processes and their reflection in the faunal remains. We studied the contextual deposition of faunal remains in Tel Dor, as a model for complex tell sites, and the possibility of using faunal remains as a tool to distinguish between context types. In addition, we asked how can we use this knowledge to elucidate site formation processes. Our results demonstrate that most loci defined in the field as primary refuse or purposive disposal are indeed different from the loci defined as secondary refuse. Different types of contexts can be differentiated, to a degree, from one another based upon multivariate analysis of faunal remains. Statistical as well as spatial analyses may help elucidate site formation processes and the use of space. Bones can, and in many cases do, reflect primary activities. Lumping zooarchaeological data into a single ‘assemblage’, as done in most zooarchaeological studies today causes major loss of information. Consideration of the specific location of faunal remains can be used as further indication for context identity and for understanding specific activities in a site, with care this can be done even in complex sites such as the ‘urban mounds’ of the Levant.

Competition between invasive species and native ones in the new environment was found to be significant and to affect both animal and plant species. Invasive ants are notorious for displacing local ant species through competition. Competitive displacement of native species can occur through interference and or resource competition. However, for invasive ants, little is known about the relative importance of competitive displacement. We studied competitive interactions of the little fire ant, Wasmannia auropunctata, one of the most destructive invasive ant species, with two other ant species, Monomorium subopacum and Pheidole teneriffana. We compared the species’ foraging behavior and studied their aggressive interactions around food baits for the short (2 h) and long (21 days) term in the laboratory. Surprisingly we found that in short term experiments W. auropunctata had the poorest foraging abilities of the three species studied: it took the workers the longest to locate the bait and retrieve it; in addition they retrieved the lowest amount of food. When both W. auropunctata and M. subopacum were foraging the same bait, in the short term competition experiment, W. auropunctata workers did not defend the bait, and ceased foraging when encountered with competition. The long-term experiments revealed that W. auropunctata had the advantage in aggressive interactions over time; they eliminated seven of nine M. subopacum’s nests while consuming some of the workers and brood. According to our laboratory studies, W. auropunctata cannot be considered an extirpator species, unless it has a substantial numerical advantage, in contrast with previous assumptions. Otherwise it may behave as an insinuator species, i.e. the workers do not initiate aggression and by staying undetected they can continue foraging adjacent to dominant species.

Summary 1. Competition is thought to be a major influence on community assembly, ecology and evolution; presence of competitors may cause divergence in traits related to resource use (character displacement). 2. Such traits, however, often vary clinally, and this phenomenon may be independent of the presence or absence of competing species. 3. The presence of such clines can either obscure the effects of competition, or create an impression that competition is operating when, in fact, it is not. 4. We corrected for clinal variation while testing for character displacement in two well-studied weasel (Mustela) guilds, in the Nearctic and the west Palaearctic. 5. Without accounting for clines, our results agreed with previous studies suggesting character displacement in these guilds. 6. However, when we corrected for clines, predictions of competition theory were not met – and often we obtained evidence for character convergence in sympatry. 7. This may suggest that the nature of the resource base may be more important than interspecific competition in shaping morphology and size in these carnivores. 8. Our results highlight the need to account for geographic variation when studying character displacement and cast some doubt on prevailing ideas regarding the effect of competition on morphological evolution.

We studied the effect of food supplementation during summer and winter in seminatural field conditions on thermoregulation of a desert rodent, the golden spiny mouse Acomys russatus. We hypothesized that (a) under natural food availability (control conditions), mice will use less precise thermoregulation (i.e., an increase in the variance of body temperature [T(b)]) during winter because of low ambient temperatures (T(a)'s) and low food availability and during summer because of low food and water availability; (b) food supplementation will result in more precise thermoregulation during winter, but the effect will be smaller during summer because variation in T(b) in summer is also driven by water availability during that period. We found that under natural food availability, spiny mice thermoregulated more precisely during summer than during winter. They spent more time torpid during summer than during winter even when food was supplemented (although summer nights are shorter), allowing them to conserve water. Supplementing food resulted in more precise thermoregulation in both seasons, and mice spent less time torpid. In summer, thermoregulation at high T(a)'s was less precise, resulting in higher maximum T(b)'s in summer than in winter and when food was supplemented, in accord with the expected effect of water shortage on thermoregulation. Our results suggest that as expected, precise thermoregulation is beneficial when possible and is abandoned only when the costs of homeothermy outweigh the benefits.

We studied the effect of ecological light pollution on a rocky desert community, focusing on 2 spiny mouse congeners, nocturnal Acomys cahirinus (common spiny mouse) and diurnal Acomys russatus (golden spiny mouse). We hypothesized that in response to artificial illumination A. cahirinus will decrease its activity and A. russatus will increase its activity, and thus temporal overlap and interspecific competition could increase. Our study took place in 4 field enclosures: the 1st and 3rd months were controls with natural light, and in the 2nd month artificial illumination, simulating low levels of light pollution, was set for the first 3 h of the night. We implanted temperature-sensitive radiotransmitters to monitor mouse activity, and individual identification tags with automonitored foraging patches were used to track foraging behavior. A. cahirinus decreased activity and foraging with artificial lighting, restricting movement particularly in less-sheltered microhabitats, probably because of inc...

How Mammals Grew in Size Mammals diversified greatly after the end-Cretaceous extinction, which eliminated the dominant land animals (dinosaurs). Smith et al. (p. 1216 ) examined how the maximum size of mammals increased during their radiation in each continent. Overall, mammal size increased rapidly, then leveled off after about 25 million years. This pattern holds true on most of the continents—even though data are sparse for South America—and implies that mammals grew to fill available niches before other environmental and biological limits took hold.

Introduction is a critical stage in vertebrates’ invasion process; once imported, they have a high probability of establishment and spread. While there is a consensus that trade is a primary conduit for non-indigenous species (NIS) introductions, and a key locus for preventive regulation, few policies have been evaluated by scientists for effectiveness. A science-based quantitative assessment of regulatory performance could significantly decrease invasion risk. We carried out a quantitative analysis of data on importation permits of terrestrial vertebrates and the reporting system, using the Israeli regulatory system as a model. This regulatory system is based on long-established wildlife protection legislation, now being used to control NIS vertebrates, much as is the case in many other countries. Ecological risk assessment for NIS was sometimes carried out, but it is not mandatory within the regulatory process, and no legally-binding criteria for assessment exist. We found a significant decrease in number of permits issued over the years, but this decrease does not reflect perception of ecological risk. We found permit quotas of much wider volumes than those actually used, indicating that trade volumes are dictated by retailers rather than by regulators. Actual imports are frequently not reported, hindering efforts to assess propagule pressure and to monitor and analyze effects of introductions. We conclude that the regulatory system should be more science-based, that the import database should be formulated to allow future ecological research and mitigation, and that legally-binding ecological risk assessment would contribute significantly to the strength of NIS regulation.

Sclerophyllous oak forests are an important ecosystem type of the natural vegetation in the Mediterranean region. As a part of the mosaic-like landscape, old-growth oak forests, in particular, provide a wide range of ecosystem functions and services. However, due to the general scarcity of older forests in the Mediterranean region, studies on structure and dynamics of oak forests are mostly restricted to younger stands. The aim of this study was to analyze stand structure, dead wood, and natural regeneration of an old Quercus calliprinos forest in northern Israel (nature reserve Ya'ar Bar'am) and to compare the results with those reported from other evergreen Mediterranean oak forests. The mean density of trees was 735 ha-1, and the mean basal area amounted to 25.0 m2 ha-1. The mean tree height was 6.6 m, and the maximum tree height was 13.2 m. The mean dead wood volume was 11 m3 ha-1. The sapling density ranged from 1,050 to 6,250 ha-1. We conclude that Bar'am Forest is of great value for conservation bi...

The little fire ant, Wasmannia auropunctata, probably arrived in Israel in ca. 1998 and was identified in 2005; this is the first record of this species from open areas outside the tropics and subtropics. It survives harsher conditions than in its native habitats, with minimal annual temperatures as low as 6°C, and 5–12 consecutive rainless months (under 15 mm rainfall per month). It is now known from 26 localities in Israel, mostly in irrigated gardens. As in other regions where they have invaded, these ants pose a serious threat to local biodiversity. At high densities they displaced almost all the local ant species sampled, affecting population abundances, species richness, and community structure. W. auropunctata seems to have a detrimental effect also on other ground arthropods, judging from the observed decline in spider and beetle abundances. We show here that this tropical species can pose a critical threat to local arthropods at a wider range of climatic conditions than was previously known.

We studied the distribution in time and in space of desert arthropods as a food resource in order to gain insight into the relationship between foraging activity, foraging microhabitat use, and temporal changes in these parameters, and resource availability. We focused on two primarily insectivorous congeneric species of spiny mice, the common spiny mouse ( Acomys cahirinus ) and the golden spiny mouse ( Acomys russatus ), that overlap in their ecology, but differ in their diel activity patterns. Arthropod availability was higher during the night, suggesting that in terms of resource availability, night should be the preferred activity time for spiny mice. Different taxa were active during day and night, suggesting that temporal partitioning could indeed be a mechanism of coexistence between the two species. Seasonal variation in arthropod availability is reflected in spiny mouse diets, with more arthropods taken during summer, allowing temporal partitioning to be a viable mechanism of coexistence. In winter when arthropod availability drops, the two species exhibit trade-offs in foraging microhabitat use. Seasonal and spatial variability in arthropod availability between habitats conforms to habitat choice. Thus resource availability appears to be a significant factor structuring this rocky desert rodent community.

Aim Global warming and other anthropogenic changes to the environment affect many aspects of biology and have often been invoked as causing body size changes in vertebrates. Here we examine a diverse set of carnivore populations in search of patterns in body size change that could reflect global warming (in accord with Bergmann's rule). Location Global. Methods We used > 4400 specimens representing 22 carnivore species in 52 populations collected over the last few decades to examine whether size changed with collection date when geography and sex are accounted for. We then examined several factors related to global warming, body mass, diet, and the attributes of the different datasets, to see whether they affect the standardized slope (β) of the size versus time regression. Results Six of 52 populations we examined show a significant effect of year of collection on body size at the 0.05 probability level. The response of size to global warming does not reflect spatial patterns of size variation, nor do diet or body mass affect tendency of populations to change in body size. Size changes are no more pronounced in populations that have been sampled more recently. However, change, where it occurs, is rapid. Main conclusions There may be a tendency in the literature to report only cases where recent changes are prevalent. Although in our data only a minority of populations show body size changes, we may see changes accelerating in the future in response to more drastic climatic changes and other anthropogenic changes.

Few comprehensive works have investigated non-indigenous snails and slugs as a group. We compiled a database of non-indigenous gastropods in Israel to explore how they arrived and spread, characteristics of their introduction, and their biological traits. Fifty-two species of introduced gastropods are known from Israel (of which nine species subsequently went extinct): 19 species of freshwater snails and 33 species of terrestrial gastropods. The majority of these species are found only in human-dominated habitats. Most of those found in natural habitats are aquatic species. Most snails are introduced unintentionally from various parts of the Holoarctic region, reaching Israel as stowaways with horticultural imports and the aquarium trade, but some are brought intentionally to be used as pets or for food. Because the study of this group in Israel is very limited, information regarding their distribution in the country and their effects on other species is incomplete. Though only nine species of non-indigenous snails have been found to date in natural habitats, some of these are very abundant. More information and research is required to enable effective management schemes.

Summary Successfully reintroduced species offer an exceptional opportunity to study the rules that govern population range expansion. We suggest that models that are based on knowledge of space-use patterns of reintroduced species can be used as projection models in the context of landscape planning. We illustrate this idea through a case study in which we used the population range-expansion patterns of Persian fallow deer ( Dama mesopotamica ) reintroduced in northern Israel, to explore potential impact of landscape development on species space-use patterns. In this approach we used an individual-based spatially explicit model that simulates species range expansion on a realistic landscape. We previously validated the model over the short-term (5 years) and apply it here for long-term, 50-year, projections using two scenarios: (1) current landscape conditions; and (2) the government's development plans for the region. Based on the long-term projections using the current landscape, we identified and mapped preferred deer habitat in which population activity centres were established. By applying the model to the government's development scenario for the region we examined the potential effect of landscape development on habitat availability and the future spatial distribution of the deer. By comparing the outputs from both scenarios threats to landscape connectivity could be identified. A map presenting key areas for landscape connectivity, important for the reintroduced species, can be used for long-term planning of local and regional development. Under the umbrella paradigm, protecting these areas may help to also conserve other species in the same ecosystem.

To date, most research in the field of biological rhythms has been performed on nocturnal rodents under laboratory conditions. This research has made much progress in recent years. It is now time to investigate the adaptive value of the studied molecular mechanisms under natural conditions. Here we review relevant studies of rodent activity patterns. We also review a case study of temporal partitioning between spiny mice. We conclude that the response to environmental stimuli, using a system composed of a rigid master circadian oscillator and more flexible mechanisms such as peripheral oscillators with weak coupling, masking responses, and downstream switching mechanisms, is adaptive since it enables an animal to reset its activity phase without the cost of shifting the phase of the entire circadian system. We suggest that these mechanisms play a significant role in determining activity patterns under natural conditions, and are important for understanding the ecology and evolution of activity rhythms.

This study is designed to determine the extent to which taphonomic processes alter the taxonomic composition of fish remains in lacustrine sediments. We wish to explore information loss in a bone assemblage relative to the original, living community. We examined fish bone assemblages from lacustrine sediments along the southern shore of Lake Kinneret (Sea of Galilee) and compared them to modern living communities. For this purpose we randomly selected 24 squares, each 0.5 m2 in size, and excavated them to a depth of 30–50 cm. Three lithofacies were recovered, spanning the past 1500 years (unccorected for reservoir age). The fish remains include 5037 bones and 758 scales, of which 1566 bones were identified to taxonomic group. The list of identified species was compared with the list of indigenous species known to live in Lake Kinneret in general and in a similar sandy habitat in particular. The proportion of skeletal elements found was compared with the proportion known in a complete fish. Our study indicates that differences exist between the three lithofacies in species diversity and composition, skeletal element richness, completeness, and relative abundance. In addition, the bones exhibit a clumped distribution pattern, regardless of depositional depth. From a taphonomic and paleoecological perspective, our findings demonstrate that fish remains retrieved from lacustrine sediments do not represent the composition and diversity of species as in the recent fish community.

A promising shortcut for quantifying species patterns is to use genera and families as surrogates of species. At large spatial scales, concurrence between patterns of richness, rarity, and composition of species and higher taxa is generally high. Only a few researchers, however, have examined this relationship at the local scale, which is frequently the relevant scale in land-use conflicts. We investigated the reliability of the higher-taxon approach in assessing patterns of species richness, rarity, and composition at the local scale. We studied diversity patterns of three commonly used surrogate taxa: vascular plants, ground-dwelling beetles, and moths. We conducted year-round field surveys for these taxa in the Jerusalem Mountains and the Judean foothills, Israel. Richness and composition of species were highly correlated with richness and composition of genera for all taxa. At the family level, correlations with richness and composition of species were much lower. Excluding monotypic genera and families did not affect these relations. Rarity representation based on higher taxa varied considerably depending on the taxon, and rarity scale and was weaker compared with richness and composition representation. Cumulative richness curves of species and genera showed similar patterns, leveling off at equivalent sampling efforts. Genus-level assessments were a reliable surrogate for local patterns of species richness, rarity, and composition, but family-level assessments performed poorly. The advantage of using coarse taxonomic scales in local diversity surveys is that it may decrease identification time and the need for experts, but it will not reduce sampling effort.