Abstract: Change in body size can be driven by social (density) and non-social (environmental and spatial variation) factors. In expanding metapopulations, spatial sorting by means of dispersal on the expansion front can further drive the evolution of body size. However, human intervention can dramatically affect these founder effects. Using long-term monitoring of the colonization of the remote Kerguelen islands by brown trout, a facultative anadromous salmonid, we analyse body size variation in 32 naturally founded and 10 human-introduced populations over 57 years. In naturally founded populations, we find that spatial sorting promotes slow positive changes in body size on the expansion front, then that body size decreases as populations get older and local density increases. This pattern is, however, completely different in human-introduced populations, where body size remains constant or even increases as populations get older. The present findings confirm that changes in body size can be affected by metapopulation expansion, but that human influence, even in very remote environments, can fully alter this process.

Abstract: The rate of biological invasions is growing unprecedentedly, threatening ecological and socioeconomic systems worldwide. Quantitative understandings of invasion temporal trajectories are essential to discern current and future economic impacts of invaders, and then to inform future management strategies. Here, we examine the temporal trends of cumulative invasion costs by developing and testing a novel mathematical model with a population dynamical approach based on logistic growth. This model characterises temporal cost developments into four curve types (I–IV), each with distinct mathematical and qualitative properties, allowing for the parameterization of maximum cumulative costs, carrying capacities and growth rates. We test our model using damage cost data for eight genera (Rattus, Aedes, Canis, Oryctolagus, Sturnus, Ceratitis, Sus and Lymantria) extracted from the InvaCost database—which is the most up-to-date and comprehensive global compilation of economic cost estimates associated with invasive alien species. We find fundamental differences in the temporal dynamics of damage costs among genera, indicating they depend on invasion duration, species ecology and impacted sectors of economic activity. The fitted cost curves indicate a lack of broadscale support for saturation between invader density and impact, including for Canis, Oryctolagus and Lymantria, whereby costs continue to increase with no sign of saturation. For other taxa, predicted saturations may arise from data availability issues resulting from an underreporting of costs in many invaded regions. Overall, this population dynamical approach can produce cost trajectories for additional existing and emerging species, and can estimate the ecological parameters governing the linkage between population dynamics and cost dynamics.

Abstract: A wide range of animal species accumulate objects in, on, and/or around structures they build. Sometimes, these accumulations serve specific functions (e.g. structural or isolating features) or are purely incidental, while in other cases the materials are deliberately displayed to serve signalling purposes (extended phenotype signals). In this pilot study, we employed systematic in situ observations and camera trapping to describe for the first time that both partners of a territorial shorebird, the black-faced sheathbill (Chionis minor ssp minor) collect, carry, and arrange colourful marine shells and dry twigs within and around their nest cavity. Our observations expand the taxonomic breadth of avian extended phenotype signals, by showing that at least one species within a largely understudied group i.e., Charadriiformes, exhibits nest-decoration behaviour. Multiple manipulative experiments are needed to explore further the signalling function of these decorations, which opens new exciting avenues for animal communication and cognition research.

Abstract: Bird vocalizations are critical cues in social interactions as they convey temporary information varying with the social context, for example, the signaler motivation when facing a rival or a potential mate. To date, literature mainly focused on learning birds. Burrowing petrels (Procellariidae) are nonlearning birds with a limited vocal repertoire. Bachelor males communicate with conspecifics with a single call emitted in three situations: in the absence of a certain auditory (spontaneous calls), toward females (female-directed calls), and toward males (male-directed calls). We first hypothesized that, although the call structure is preserved, temporal and spectral parameters vary between the three call types of bachelor males, translating different motivations (Motivation Hypothesis). To go further, we hypothesized that acoustic variations in male-directed calls indicate the signaler’s aggressive motivation and, therefore, the variations are similar whether calls are produced by breeder or bachelor males (Breeding Status Hypothesis). We tested the two hypotheses performing field playback experiments on two petrel species: the blue petrel (Halobaena caerulea) and the Antarctic prion (Pachyptila desolata). Despite the obvious call stereotypy, we observed temporal variations and frequency shifts when males react to a female or a male, which may translate the sexual or aggressive motivation of the signaler. Furthermore, the similarity of variations in male-directed calls of both breeder and bachelor males suggests the aggressive motivation. So far, vocal plasticity in nonlearning birds has been greatly underestimated. Here, we highlighted the expression of different motivations through vocal variations and the ability to produce frequency variations in species with genetically coded vocalizations.

Abstract: This Paper Reports On Consolidated Ground-based Validation Results Of The Atmospheric No2 Data Produced Operationally Since April 2018 By The Tropospheric Monitoring Instrument (Tropomi) On Board Of The Esa/eu Copernicus Sentinel-5 Precursor (S5p) Satellite. Tropospheric, Stratospheric, And Total No2 Column Data From S5p Are Compared To Correlative Measurements Collected From, Respectively, 19 Multi-axis Differential Optical Absorption Spectroscopy (Max-doas), 26 Network For The Detection Of Atmospheric Composition Change (Ndacc) Zenith-scattered-light Doas (Zsl-doas), And 25 Pandonia Global Network (Pgn)/pandora Instruments Distributed Globally. The Validation Methodology Gives Special Care To Minimizing Mismatch Errors Due To Imperfect Spatio-temporal Co-location Of The Satellite And Correlative Data, E.g. By Using Tailored Observation Operators To Account For Differences In Smoothing And In Sampling Of Atmospheric Structures And Variability And Photochemical Modelling To Reduce Diurnal Cycle Effects. Compared To The Ground-based Measurements, S5p Data Show, On Average, (I) A Negative Bias For The Tropospheric Column Data, Of Typically −23 % To −37 % In Clean To Slightly Polluted Conditions But Reaching Values As High As −51 % Over Highly Polluted Areas; (Ii) A Slight Negative Median Difference For The Stratospheric Column Data, Of About −0.2 Pmolec Cm−2, I.e. Approx. −2 % In Summer To −15 % In Winter; And (Iii) A Bias Ranging From Zero To −50 % For The Total Column Data, Found To Depend On The Amplitude Of The Total No2 Column, With Small To Slightly Positive Bias Values For Columns Below 6 Pmolec Cm−2 And Negative Values Above. The Dispersion Between S5p And Correlative Measurements Contains Mostly Random Components, Which Remain Within Mission Requirements For The Stratospheric Column Data (0.5 Pmolec Cm−2) But Exceed Those For The Tropospheric Column Data (0.7 Pmolec Cm−2). While A Part Of The Biases And Dispersion May Be Due To Representativeness Differences Such As Different Area Averaging And Measurement Times, It Is Known That Errors In The S5p Tropospheric Columns Exist Due To Shortcomings In The (Horizontally Coarse) A Priori Profile Representation In The Tm5-mp Chemical Transport Model Used In The S5p Retrieval And, To A Lesser Extent, To The Treatment Of Cloud Effects And Aerosols. Although Considerable Differences (Up To 2 Pmolec Cm−2 And More) Are Observed At Single Ground-pixel Level, The Near-real-time (Nrti) And Offline (Offl) Versions Of The S5p No2 Operational Data Processor Provide Similar No2 Column Values And Validation Results When Globally Averaged, With The Nrti Values Being On Average 0.79 % Larger Than The Offl Values.