Konrad Lorenz Institute for Evolution and Cognition Research

Wind conditions shape co-migration fidelity in trans-Saharan birds at a Mediterranean stopover site

Abstract Weather is a key driver of bird migration, particularly near ecological barriers, where migratory species often converge before crossing. While its effects on individual timing are well documented, how weather reshapes the temporal assemblage of migratory bird communitie...

Pervasive sublethal impacts of heat exposure revealed by telomere dynamics

Predicting species responses to anthropogenic environmental change remains one of the most pressing and complex challenges in contemporary biology. While mass mortality events and localized extinctions have been linked to global warming, the more elusive and probably common, effe...

Flavoglycans: Evidence for Covalent Proanthocyanidin–Polysaccharide Linkages in Western Redcedar Bark

Abstract We investigated covalent linkages between proanthocyanidins (PAs) and cell wall polysaccharides in western redcedar bark (Thuja plicata Donn), a tannin-rich forestry co-product that has potential as a functional food ingredient. An alcohol-insoluble residue (AIR; 1.0% w/...

Complex effects of sex reversal on reproductive success in wild frogs

Sex reversal, when the environment overrides genotypic sex determination, may hasten or delay climate-driven extinction in ectothermic animals, depending on sex-reversed individuals’ reproductive ability and offspring viability. Empirically, next to nothing is known about these t...

Decoupling of emigration timing and skill acquisition in a saturated population of golden eagles

Abstract Many animals must gain independence from parental care by acquiring skills necessary for survival. Thus, the rate of skill acquisition can predict when parental care ends and animals emigrate. However, young animals sometimes acquire adult-like skills long before they em...

Glimpse into the past: Analyses of the middle and inner ear of extinct rodents (Eusciurida; Rodentia; Mammalia) with implications for their locomotory behaviour

Abstract Rodentia is the most diverse and species-rich group of mammals, inhabiting almost all regions and ecosystems on earth. One of the most specialised subgroups is the Eusciurida, composed of Sciuridae, Gliridae, and Aplodontia rufa , and characterised by arboreal, fossorial...