Molecular systematics and conservation of the langurs and leaf monkeys of South Asia

Numerous morphology-based classification schemes have been proposed for langurs and leaf monkeys of South Asia but there is very little agreement between them. An incorrect classification scheme when used as a basis for biogeographic studies can support erroneous hypotheses. Further, lack of taxonomic resolution will also confound conservation efforts, given that conservation biologists use traditional morphology-based-classification schemes to prioritize species for conservation. Here, I have revisited recent molecular phylogenetic studies done on langurs and leaf monkeys of South Asia. Results from these studies are in turn used to derive a rational and scientific basis for prioritizing species for conservation. Molecular data support the classification of langurs of the Indian subcontinent-Hanuman, Nilgiri and purple-faced langurs-in the genus Semnopithecus, whereas Phayre's leaf monkey along with other Southeast Asian leaf monkeys form another distinct clade (Trachypithecus). The phylogenetic position of capped and golden langurs remains unresolved. Molecular data suggest that they are closely related to each other but this group might have evolved through past hybridization between Semnopithecus and Trachypithecus. Additionally, genetic data also support the splitting of the so-called Hanuman langurs into at least three species. The scores for taxonomic uniqueness of langurs and leaf monkeys of South Asia were revised using this molecular phylogeny-based classification. According to the revised scores, Phayres leaf monkey and golden langur are priority species for conservation followed by capped and Nilgiri langurs.

Nestedness pattern in stream diatom assemblages of central Western Ghats

Community diversity and the population abundance of a particular group of species are controlled by immediate environment, inter-and intra-species interactions, landscape conditions, historical events and evolutionary processes. Nestedness is a measure of order in an ecological system, referring to the order in which the number of species is related to area or other factors. In this study we have studied the nestedness pattern in stream diatom assemblages in 24 stream sites of central Western Ghats, and report 98 taxa from the streams of central Western Ghats region. The communities show highly significant nested pattern. The Mantel test of matrix revealed a strong relationship between species assemblages and environmental conditions at the sites. A significant relationship between species assemblage and environmental condition was observed. Principal component analysis (PCA) indicated that environmental conditions differed markedly across the sampling sites, with the first three components explaining 78% of variance. Species composition of diatoms is significantly correlated with environmental distance across geographical extent. The current pattern suggests that micro-environment at regional levels influences the species composition of epilithic diatoms in streams. The nestedness shown by the diatom community was highly significant, even though it had a high proportion of idiosyncratic species, characterized with high numbers of cosmopolitan species, whereas the nested species were dominated by endemic species. PCA identifies ionic parameters and nutrients as the major features which determine the characteristics of the sampling sites. Hence the local water quality parameters are the major factors in deciding the diatom species assemblages.

Why we must empower people to conserve Biodiversity

Conserving blodiversity has in recent years become a concern of the global elite because of the commercial potential of the emerging biotechnologies. But much of this blodiversity resides In the Third World tropics which are currently being drained of their biological and mineral wealth. This process goes on because the costs of the resultant degradation are entirely passed on to the poor of the Third World countryside who perforce have to depend on resources gathered or produced with their own labour from their surroundings. The elite have always found a substitute whenever a particular resource, or a particular locality, has been exploited to exhaustion. Indeed, given their record, commercial interests are likely to abandon the new found concern for conservation once they acquire control over adequate levels of genetic resources in ex situ storages. Long term conservation of biodiversity must therefore be attempted through empowering and suitably rewarding people of the Third World countryside whose well being is linked to the sustainable use of biological resources and conservation of the biodiversity in their own localities.

Mining Land Cover Information Using Multilayer Perceptron and Decision Tree from MODIS Data

Land cover (LC) changes play a major role in global as well as at regional scale patterns of the climate and biogeochemistry of the Earth system. LC information presents critical insights in understanding of Earth surface phenomena, particularly useful when obtained synoptically from remote sensing data. However, for developing countries and those with large geographical extent, regular LC mapping is prohibitive with data from commercial sensors (high cost factor) of limited spatial coverage (low temporal resolution and band swath). In this context, free MODIS data with good spectro-temporal resolution meet the purpose. LC mapping from these data has continuously evolved with advances in classification algorithms. This paper presents a comparative study of two robust data mining techniques, the multilayer perceptron (MLP) and decision tree (DT) on different products of MODIS data corresponding to Kolar district, Karnataka, India. The MODIS classified images when compared at three different spatial scales (at district level, taluk level and pixel level) shows that MLP based classification on minimum noise fraction components on MODIS 36 bands provide the most accurate LC mapping with 86% accuracy, while DT on MODIS 36 bands principal components leads to less accurate classification (69%).

Reproductive phenology of a tropical dry forest in Mudumalai, Southern India

1 Flowering and fruiting phenologies of a tropical dry forest in Mudumalai, southern India, were studied between April 1988 and August 1990. Two sites, a wetter site I receiving 1100mm and a drier site II receiving 600mm of rainfall annually, are compared. A total of 286 trees from 38 species at site I and 167 trees from 27 species at site II was marked for phenological observations. There were 11 species common to the two sites. Several hypotheses relating to the evolution of reproductive phenology are tested. 2 Frequency of species flowering attained a peak at site I during the dry season but at site II, where soil moisture may be limiting during the dry months, the peak was during the wet season. At both sites a majority of species flushed leaves and flowered simultaneously. Among various guilds, the bird-pollinated guild showed distinct dry season flowering, which may be related to better advertisement of large flowers to pollinators during the leafless dry phase. The wind-pollinated guild flowered mainly during the wet season, when wind speeds are highest and favourable for pollen transport. The insect-pollinated guild showed no seasonality in flowering in site I but a wet season flowering in site II. 3 Fruiting frequency attained a peak in site I during the late wet season extending into the early dry season; a time-lag correlation showed that fruiting followed rainfall with a lag of about two months. Site II showed a similar fruiting pattern but this was not statistically significant. The dispersal guilds (animal, wind, and explosive passively-dispersed) did not show any clear seasonality in fruiting, except for the animal-dispersed guild which showed wet season fruiting in site I. 4 Hurlbert's overlap index was also calculated in order to look at synchrony in flowering and fruiting irrespective of climatic (dry and wet month) seasonality. In general, overlap in flowering and fruiting guilds was high because of seasonal aggregation. Among the exceptions, at site II the wind-pollinated flowering guild did not show significant overlap between species although flowering aggregated in the wet season. This could be due to the need to avoid heterospecific pollen transfer. 5 Rarer species tended to flower earlier in the dry season and this again could be an adaptation to avoid the risk of heterospecific pollen transfer or competition for pollinators. The more abundant species flowered mainly during the wet season. Species which flower earlier have larger flowers and, having invested more energy in flowers, also have shorter flower to fruit durations.

Thermolabile ribonucleases from antarctic psychrotrophic bacteria: detection of the enzyme in various bacteria and purification from Pseudomonas fluorescens

Thirteen terrestrial psychrotrophic bacteria from Antarctica were screened for the presence of a thermolabile ribonuclease (RNAase-HL). The enzyme was detected in three isolates of Pseudomonas fluorescens and one isolate of Pseudomonas syringae. It was purified from one P. Fluorescens isolate and the molecular mass of the enzyme as determined by SDS-PAGE was 16 kDa. RNAase-HL exhibited optimum activity around 40 degrees C at pH 7.4. It could hydrolyse Escherichia coli RNA and the synthetic substrates poly(A), poly(C), poly(U) and poly(A-U). Unlike the crude RNAase from mesophilic P. Fluorescens and pure bovine pancreatic RNAase A which were active even at 65 degrees C, RNAase-HL was totally and irreversibly inactivated at 65 degrees C.

Social selection and the evolution of cooperative groups: The example of the cellular slime moulds

In social selection the phenotype of an individual depends on its own genotype as well as on the phenotypes, and so genotypes, of other individuals. This makes it impossible to associate an invariant phenotype with a genotype: the social context is crucial. Descriptions of metazoan development, which often is viewed as the acme of cooperative social behaviour, ignore or downplay this fact. The implicit justification for doing so is based on a group-selectionist point of view. Namely, embryos are clones, therefore all cells have the same evolutionary interest, and the visible differences between cells result from a common strategy. The reasoning is flawed, because phenotypic heterogeneity within groups can result from contingent choices made by cells from a flexible repertoire as in multicellular development. What makes that possible is phenotypic plasticity, namely the ability of a genotype to exhibit different phenotypes. However, co-operative social behaviour with division of labour requires that different phenotypes interact appropriately, not that they belong to the same genotype, or have overlapping genetic interests. We sketch a possible route to the evolution of social groups that involves many steps: (a) individuals that happen to be in spatial proximity benefit simply by virtue of their number; (b) traits that are already present act as preadaptations and improve the efficiency of the group; and (c) new adaptations evolve under selection in the social context-that is, via interactions between individuals-and further strengthen group behaviour. The Dictyostelid or cellular slime mould amoebae (CSMs) become multicellular in an unusual way, by the aggregation of free-living cells. In nature the resulting group can be genetically homogeneous (clonal) or heterogeneous (polyclonal); in either case its development, which displays strong cooperation between cells (to the extent of so-called altruism) is not affected. This makes the CSMs exemplars for the study of social behaviour.

Science as a hobby: how and why I came to study the social life of an Indian primitively eusocial wasp

For the most part, my research career has involved prying into the life of the locally abundant primitively eusocial paper wasp, Ropalidia marginata, with the aim of understanding the origin and evolution of social life in insects. My interest in this wasp species began as a hobby, but I was privileged to soon convert my hobby into my profession. Here I describe how this conversion came about, what it meant to pursue my hobby as a full-time activity, describe some examples from my research and end with some reflections about the process of doing modern science, especially in India.

Why the Definition of Eusociality Is Not Helpful to Understand Its Evolution and What Should We Do about It

The evolution of altruism is the central problem of the evolution of eusociality. The evolution of altruism is most likely to be understood by studying species that show altruism in spite of being capable of ''selfish'' individual reproduction. But the definition of eusociality groups together primitively eusocial species where workers retain the ability to reproduce on their own and highly eusocial species where workers have lost reproductive options. At the same time it separates the primitively eusocial species from semisocial species, species that lack life-time sterility and cooperatively breeding birds and mammals, in most of which, altruism and the associated social life are facultative. The definition of eusociality is also such that it is sometimes difficult to decide,what is eusocial and what is not. I therefore suggest that, (1) we expand the scope of eusociality to include semisocial species, primitively eusocial species, highly eusocial species as well as those cooperatively breeding birds and mammals where individuals give up substantial or all personal reproduction for aiding conspecifics, (2) there should be no requirement of overlap of generations or of life-time sterility and (3) the distinction between primitively and highly eusocial should continue, based on the presence or absence of morphological caste differentiation.

Long term monitering of vegetation in a tropical deciduous forest in Mudumalai,southern India

As part of an international network of large plots to study tropical vegetation dynamics on a long-term basis, a 50-hectare permanent plot was set up during 1988-89 in the deciduous forests of Mudumalai, southern India. Within this plot 25,929 living woody plants (71 species) above 1 cm DBH (diameter at breast height) were identified, measured, tagged and mapped. Species abundances corresponded to the characteristic log-normal distribution. The four most abundant species (Kydia calycina, Lagerstroemia microcarpa, Terminalia crenulata and Helicteres isora) constituted nearly 56% of total stems, while seven species were represented by only one individual each in the plot. Variance/mean ratios of density showed most species to have clumped distributions. The population declined overall by 14% during the first two years, largely due to elephant and fire-mediated damage to Kydia calycina and Helicteres isora. In this article we discuss the need for large plots to study vegetation dynamics.

Phenology of tree species of tropical moist forest of Uttara Kannada district, Karnataka, India

Phenological observations on tree species in tropical moist forest of Uttara Kannada district (13ℴ55′ to 15ℴ31′ N lat; 74ℴ9′ to 75ℴ10′ E long) during the years 1983–1985 revealed that there exists a strong seasonality for leaf flush, leaf drop and reproduction. Young leaves were produced in the pre-monsoon dry period with a peak in February, followed by the expansion of leaves which was completed in March. Abscission of leaves occurred in the post-monsoon winter period with a peak in December. There were two peaks for flowering (December and March), while fruit ripening had a single peak in May–June, preceding the monsoon rainfall. The duration of maturation of leaves was the shortest, while that of full ripening of fruits was the longest. Mature flowers of evergreen species lasted longer than those of deciduous species; in contrast the phenophase of ripe fruits of deciduous species was longer than that of evergreen species.