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Deto Echinata
''Deto echinata'', the horned isopod, is a species of air-breathing isopod, or woodlouse, in the family Detonidae. It inhabits seashores in southern Africa and on some oceanic islands. Description ''Deto echinata'' is distinguished by a pair of long curved "horns" situated on the back of each segment of the thorax. These horns are substantially longer in males than in females. Horn length in males has been found to be correlated with body condition, and it is hypothesized that this sexual dimorphism acts as an indicator of overall fitness and is the result of sexual selection. Colouration is dark brown on the back, lighter brown in patches, underneath and on the extremities. Males have an average length of 30 mm, females of 22 mm, making the species one of the largest in the suborder. Distribution The species occurs on the coast of southern Africa, having been recorded in Namibia, South Africa and Mozambique. It can also be found on ÃŽle Amsterdam and ÃŽle Saint-Paul i ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Félix Édouard Guérin-Méneville
Félix Édouard Guérin-Méneville, also known as F. E. Guerin, (12 October 1799, in Toulon – 26 January 1874, in Paris) was a French entomologist. Life and work Guérin-Méneville changed his surname from Guérin in 1836. He was the author of the illustrated work ''Iconographie du Règne Animal de G. Cuvier 1829–1844'', a complement to the work of the zoologists Georges Cuvier and Pierre André Latreille, ''Le Règne Animal'', which illustrated only a selection of the animals covered. Cuvier was delighted with the work, saying that it would be very useful to readers, and that the illustrations were "as accurate as they were elegant". He also introduced silkworms to France, so they could be bred for the production of silk. Guérin-Méneville founded several journals: ''Magasin de zoologie, d’anatomie comparée et de paléontologie'' (1830), ''Revue zoologique par la Société cuviérienne'' (1838), ''Revue et Magasin de zoologie pure et appliquée'' (1849), and ''Revue de ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Namibia
Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the northeast, approximating a quadripoint, Zimbabwe lies less than 200 metres (660 feet) away along the Zambezi, Zambezi River near Kazungula, Zambia. Namibia's capital and largest city is Windhoek. Namibia is the driest country in sub-Saharan Africa, and has been inhabited since prehistoric times by the Khoekhoe, Khoi, San people, San, Damara people, Damara and Nama people. Around the 14th century, immigration, immigrating Bantu peoples arrived as part of the Bantu expansion. From 1600 the Ovambo people#History, Ovambo formed kingdoms, such as Ondonga and Oukwanyama. In 1884, the German Empire established rule over most of the territory, forming a colony known as German South West Africa. Between 1904 and 1908, German troops waged a punitive ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ligia Dilatata
''Ligia dilatata'' is a woodlouse in the family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ... Ligiidae. Identification It has a finely granular surface and a body that is slightly convex, as well as eyes that are large and convex. It has relatively small uropods. It can be differentiated from '' L. glabrata'', with which it shares some range, by its antennae. The antennae of ''L. dilatata'' are longer, reaching the end of its thorax. Habits ''Ligia dilatata'' feeds extensively on dislodged '' Ecklonia maxima'' and '' Laminaria pallida'' that wash up on shore. They gather in large numbers on these kelp. The species lives about 2 years. Females start reproducing at 12 months but, unlike males, probably do not survive to breed twice. The brood period is 5 to 6 weeks. Growth ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Intertidal Zone
The intertidal zone or foreshore is the area above water level at low tide and underwater at high tide; in other words, it is the part of the littoral zone within the tidal range. This area can include several types of habitats with various species of life, such as sea stars, sea urchins, and many species of coral with regional differences in biodiversity. Sometimes it is referred to as the ''littoral zone'' or '' seashore'', although those can be defined as a wider region. The intertidal zone also includes steep rocky cliffs, sandy beaches, bogs or wetlands (e.g., vast mudflats). This area can be a narrow strip, such as in Pacific islands that have only a narrow tidal range, or can include many meters of shoreline where shallow beach slopes interact with high tidal excursion. The peritidal zone is similar but somewhat wider, extending from above the highest tide level to below the lowest. Organisms in the intertidal zone are well-adapted to their environment, facing high ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
ÃŽle Saint-Paul
is an island forming part of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands (, TAAF) in the Indian Ocean, with an area of . The island is located about south of the larger Île Amsterdam , northeast of the Kerguelen Islands, and southeast of Réunion. It is an important breeding site for seabirds. A scientific research cabin on the island is used for scientific or ecological short campaigns, but there is no permanent population. It is under the authority of a senior administrator on Réunion. Geography Île Saint-Paul is a volcanic island with a triangular shape that measures no more than at its widest point. It is the top of an active volcano; the volcano last erupted in 1793 (from its SW flank), and is rocky with steep cliffs on the east side. The thin stretch of rock that used to close off the crater collapsed in 1780, admitting the sea through a channel; the entrance is only a few meters deep, thus allowing only very small ships or boats to enter the crater. The interior ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
ÃŽle Amsterdam
(), also known as Amsterdam Island or New Amsterdam (), is an island of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands in the southern Indian Ocean that together with neighbouring Île Saint-Paul to the south forms one of the five districts of the territory. The island is roughly equidistant to the land masses of Madagascar, Australia, and Antarcticaas well as the British Indian Ocean Territory and the Cocos (Keeling) Islands (about from each). It is the northernmost volcanic island within the Antarctic Plate. The research station at , first called and then , is the only settlement on the island and is the seasonal home to about thirty researchers and staff studying biology, meteorology, and geomagnetics. History The first person known to have sighted the island was the Spanish explorer Juan Sebastián Elcano, on 18 March 1522, during his circumnavigation of the world. Elcano called it (), because he couldn't find a safe place to land and his crew was desperate for water after ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Mozambique
Mozambique, officially the Republic of Mozambique, is a country located in Southeast Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi and Zambia to the northwest, Zimbabwe to the west, and Eswatini and South Africa to the south and southwest. The sovereign state is separated from the Comoros, Mayotte, and Madagascar by the Mozambique Channel to the east. The capital and largest city is Maputo. Between the 7th and 11th centuries, a series of Swahili port towns developed on that area, which contributed to the development of a distinct Swahili culture and dialect. In the late medieval period, these towns were frequented by traders from Somalia, Ethiopia, Egypt, Arabia, Persia, and India. The voyage of Vasco da Gama in 1498 marked the arrival of the Portuguese Empire, Portuguese, who began a gradual process of colonisation and settlement in 1505. After over four centuries of Portuguese Mozambique, Portuguese rule, Mozambique Mozambican War of Indepen ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic Ocean, South Atlantic and Indian Ocean; to the north by the neighbouring countries of Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe; to the east and northeast by Mozambique and Eswatini; and it encloses Lesotho. Covering an area of , the country has Demographics of South Africa, a population of over 64 million people. Pretoria is the administrative capital, while Cape Town, as the seat of Parliament of South Africa, Parliament, is the legislative capital, and Bloemfontein is regarded as the judicial capital. The largest, most populous city is Johannesburg, followed by Cape Town and Durban. Cradle of Humankind, Archaeological findings suggest that various hominid species existed in South Africa about 2.5 million years ago, and modern humans inhabited the ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sexual Selection
Sexual selection is a mechanism of evolution in which members of one sex mate choice, choose mates of the other sex to mating, mate with (intersexual selection), and compete with members of the same sex for access to members of the opposite sex (intrasexual selection). These two forms of selection mean that some individuals have greater reproductive success than others within a population, for example because they are more Animal sexual behaviour, attractive or prefer more attractive partners to produce offspring. Successful males benefit from frequent mating and monopolizing access to one or more fertile females. Females can maximise the return on the energy they invest in reproduction by selecting and mating with the best males. The concept was first articulated by Charles Darwin who wrote of a "second agency" other than natural selection, in which competition between mate candidates could lead to speciation. The theory was given a mathematical basis by Ronald Fisher in the e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Gustav Budde-Lund
Gustav Henrik Andreas Budde-Lund (11 January 1846 – 19 September 1911) was a Danish invertebrate zoologist. In 1868, he co-founded the '' Entomologisk Forening'', alongside Rasmus William Traugott Schlick, Carl August Møller, Andreas Haas and Ivar Frederik Christian Ammitzbøll. He was a student of entomologist J. C. Schiødte, and became a leading authority on terrestrial isopods (woodlice, pill bugs and relatives), describing over 70 genera and around 500 species. He married in 1875 and in 1885 produced his seminal work ''Crustacea Isopoda terrestria''. The woodlouse genus '' Buddelundiella'' was named in his honour by Filippo Silvestri Filippo Silvestri (22 June 1873 – 10 June 1949) was an Italian entomologist. He specialised in world Protura, Thysanura, Diplura and Isoptera, but also worked on Hymenoptera, Myriapoda and Italian Diptera. He is also noted for describing a ... in 1897. References External links * 1846 births 1911 deaths Danish zoolog ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fitness (biology)
Fitness (often denoted w or ω in population genetics models) is a quantitative representation of individual reproductive success. It is also equal to the average contribution to the gene pool of the next generation, made by the same individuals of the specified genotype or phenotype. Fitness can be defined either with respect to a genotype or to a phenotype in a given environment or time. The fitness of a genotype is manifested through its phenotype, which is also affected by the developmental environment. The fitness of a given phenotype can also be different in different selective environments. With asexual reproduction, it is sufficient to assign fitnesses to genotypes. With sexual reproduction, recombination scrambles alleles into different genotypes every generation; in this case, fitness values can be assigned to alleles by averaging over possible genetic backgrounds. Natural selection tends to make alleles with higher fitness more common over time, resulting in Darwini ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sexual Dimorphism
Sexual dimorphism is the condition where sexes of the same species exhibit different Morphology (biology), morphological characteristics, including characteristics not directly involved in reproduction. The condition occurs in most dioecy, dioecious species, which consist of most animals and some plants. Differences may include secondary sex characteristics, size, weight, color, markings, or behavioral or cognitive traits. Male-male reproductive competition has evolved a diverse array of sexually dimorphic traits. Aggressive utility traits such as "battle" teeth and blunt heads reinforced as battering rams are used as weapons in aggressive interactions between rivals. Passive displays such as ornamental feathering or song-calling have also evolved mainly through sexual selection. These differences may be subtle or exaggerated and may be subjected to sexual selection and natural selection. The opposite of dimorphism is ''monomorphism'', when both biological sexes are phenotype, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
