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Tribal Adi of North-East India are a conglomeration of numerous subtribes residing in Arunachal Pradesh, a region considered a biodiversity hotspot. The diversity of insects of the region is reflected by the numerous roles that insects... more
Tribal Adi of North-East India are a conglomeration of numerous subtribes residing in Arunachal Pradesh, a region considered a biodiversity hotspot. The diversity of insects of the region is reflected by the numerous roles that insects play in the culture of the Adi. Insects are referred to in idioms, songs and stories; Adi creation myths invoke insects, some species are feared, others serve as objects of entertainment or are therapeutically used and a large number of species are appreciated as food. These edible insects are collected from the wild, eaten whole and raw or are being subjected to a variety of preparations for human ingestion. Roasting them and eating them with some ingredients like spices and vegetables are most commonly practiced. Although some species are only seasonally available, others occur the entire year. They are appreciated because they can easily be collected, are cheap and taste good. Nutritional aspects, for instance whether they contain a lot of protein, minerals or vitamins are apparently not considered in decisions on which species to eat and which to avoid. Over-harvesting, as with wild vertebrates, can affect sought after insect species as well and requires attention if Adi customs and traditions involving insects are to survive in the future.
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The ability to repair injuries among reptiles, i.e., ectothermic amniotes, is similar to that of mammals with some noteworthy exceptions. While large wounds in turtles and crocodilians are repaired through scarring, the reparative... more
The ability to repair injuries among reptiles, i.e., ectothermic amniotes, is similar to that of mammals with some noteworthy exceptions. While large wounds in turtles and crocodilians are repaired through scarring, the reparative capacity involving the tail derives from a combined process of wound healing and somatic growth, the latter being continuous in reptiles. When the tail is injured in juvenile crocodilians, turtles and tortoises as well as the tuatara (Rhynchocephalia: Sphenodon punctatus, Gray 1842), the wound is repaired in these reptiles and some muscle and connective tissue and large amounts of cartilage are regenerated during normal growth. This process, here indicated as “regengrow”, can take years to produce tails with similar lengths of the originals and results in only apparently regenerated replacements. These new tails contain a cartilaginous axis and very small (turtle and crocodilians) to substantial (e.g., in tuatara) muscle mass, while most of the tail is for...
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Two members of the genus Ferrissia Walker, 1903, namely Ferrissia nipponica (Kuroda, 1949) and F. japonica Habe and Burch, 1965, have been reported to occur in Japan, but due to a lack of molecular data, doubts have been expressed as to... more
Two members of the genus Ferrissia Walker, 1903, namely Ferrissia nipponica (Kuroda, 1949) and F. japonica Habe and Burch, 1965, have been reported to occur in Japan, but due to a lack of molecular data, doubts have been expressed as to their validity. Furthermore, the possible presence of allochthonous Ferrissia taxa has been stated under a variety of names, so that even now there is no consensus on their presence and identity. Recently, freshwater limpets belonging to the planorbid genus Ferrissia were collected in an irrigation trough on the Izu island of Hachijōjima, Tokyo, Japan. Molecular identification of the collected specimens, based on a fragment of the large ribosomal subunit 16S (mtDNA), unequivocally proved that they belong to the allochthonous, invasive species Ferrissia californica (Rowell, 1863), the protagonist of a relentless cryptic invasion worldwide to which can Japan can now be added. The shells of the collected specimens show some scars, which bear testimony to the fragile nature of the shell and, possibly, to the paucity of calcium in the inland waters of Hachijōjima.
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Boucias, D.G. & J.C. Pendland 1998: Principles of Insect Pathology. Kluwer Academic Publishers, Boston/Dordrecht/London. Pp. 537.
Insect-plant Interactions and Induced Plant Defence (Novartis Foundation Symposium 223). Editors: Derek J. Chadwick (organizer) and Jamie A. Goode (1999). John Wiley & Sons Ltd, Chichester, England. 281 pp.
Solar cells with increased short‐circuit current density and energy conversion efficiency can be realized by integrating moth eye textures in the design of perovskite and amorphous silicon thin film solar cells. Broadband light incoupling... more
Solar cells with increased short‐circuit current density and energy conversion efficiency can be realized by integrating moth eye textures in the design of perovskite and amorphous silicon thin film solar cells. Broadband light incoupling in solar cells can be achieved by using hexagonally arranged arrays of nipples or domes with parabolically shaped surface profiles. The moth eye surface texture represents a refractive index grating that allows for an efficient incoupling of light in the solar cell while minimizing reflection losses. The light incoupling is studied for perovskite and amorphous silicon solar cells. Perovskite has a rather low refractive index of ≈2.5, while amorphous silicon exhibits a refractive index of ≈4.5 comparable to that of crystalline silicon. Due to largely different refractive indices, different device designs must be selected to allow for an efficient light incoupling in the solar cell. 3D finite‐difference time‐domain simulations are used for the optica...
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Millipedes may cause unexpected damage when they are introduced to new locations, becoming invaders that leave behind their old parasites and predators. Therefore, it was interesting to find numerous rhabditid nematodes within the gut of... more
Millipedes may cause unexpected damage when they are introduced to new locations, becoming invaders that leave behind their old parasites and predators. Therefore, it was interesting to find numerous rhabditid nematodes within the gut of the invasive phytophagous millipede Chamberlinius hualienensis Wang, 1956 (Diplopoda, Paradoxosomatidae) from Hachijojima (Japan) in November, 2014. This millipede originated in Taiwan but was discovered in Japan in 1986. The nematodes were identified as juvenile Oscheius rugaoensis (Zhang et al., 2012) Darsouei et al., 2014 (Rhabditidae), and juvenile and adult Mononchoides sp. (Diplogastridae) based on images, morphometrics, and sequences of 18S and 28S rDNA. A novel short 28S sequence of a separate population of Oscheius necromenus SB218 from Australian millipedes was also included in a phylogenetic comparison of what can now be characterized as a species complex of millipede-associated Oscheius. The only other nematode associates of millipedes b...
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At least 65 insect species of 30 families and 9 orders, namely Orthoptera (15 species), Odonata (12), Coleoptera (11), Hymenoptera (10), Hemiptera (9), Lepidoptera (5) and one species each of Ephemeroptera, Isoptera and Mantodea find... more
At least 65 insect species of 30 families and 9 orders, namely Orthoptera (15 species), Odonata (12), Coleoptera (11), Hymenoptera (10), Hemiptera (9), Lepidoptera (5) and one species each of Ephemeroptera, Isoptera and Mantodea find acceptance as food by Adi and Apatani tribals. Adi use overall more species than Apatani: 53 species of 24 families and 8 orders versus 49 species of 21 families and 8 orders. Odonata are highly appreciated by the Apatani whereas Adi consume more Orthopterans. Various harvesting systems exist and often methods like handpicking or using simple tools are involved with minimal environmental impact. However, depreciation of the environment, increased availability of conventional foodstuffs, rapid population growth and rising influence of westernisation collectively affect diversity, abundance and use of edible insects, leading to a decline of entomophagy among the tribal people.
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The subject of our investigation was the visual features of wing color with special focus on the UV reflectance in the green‐veined white butterfly (Pieris napi). Previous studies had concluded that UV reflectance on dorsal wing surfaces... more
The subject of our investigation was the visual features of wing color with special focus on the UV reflectance in the green‐veined white butterfly (Pieris napi). Previous studies had concluded that UV reflectance on dorsal wing surfaces is found only in the female P. napi. Based on UV sensitive photography, we analyzed a correlation between 12 geographic and environmental factors and UV reflectance patterns on 3 patches on the forewings of 407 P. napi specimens from the Palaearctic region. Results had shown that females significantly differ from males: they exhibit a 25% higher UV reflectance. To investigate whether and how UV reflectance levels on the forewings and hindwings of both sexes are influenced by the environment, we performed a principal component analysis (PCA) with several environmental variables. For several variables (in particular, latitude and longitude, mean annual temperature and precipitation, and temperature annual range and altitude), the generalized linear mo...
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Research Interests: Materials Engineering, Condensed Matter Physics, Pigmentation, Biology, Transmission Electron Microscopy, and 15 moreMedicine, Plumage, Iridescence, Female, Animals, Male, Nanostructures, Biological evolution, Metals, Feathers, Interdisciplinary Engineering, Passeriformes, Feather, Keratins, and Micron
Cytochemical and histological details are presented on the localization of actomyosin adenosine triphosphatase (am-ATPase), succinic dehydrogenase, lipid, and glycogen in the body musculature of the Southern smelt Retropinna retropinna.... more
Cytochemical and histological details are presented on the localization of actomyosin adenosine triphosphatase (am-ATPase), succinic dehydrogenase, lipid, and glycogen in the body musculature of the Southern smelt Retropinna retropinna. The results clearly show that in addition to the red and white muscle fibers a variety of pink fibers are present, which can be further classified according to fiber diameter, staining characteristics, and location. Using acid and alkaline preincubation with myofibrillar am-ATPase stain, both large and small diameter pink fibers were distinguishable from red as well as white fibers. It is suggested that a transition between aerobic and anaerobic metabolisms exists in intermediate zone fibers of which those with small diameters are likely to possess aerobic and those of large diameters a more anaerobic capacity. The difference in metabolism could be related to fiber diameter and the associated constraints of large diffusion distances on oxygen availab...
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The night flying scarabaeid beetle Anoplognathus provides an example of a dark-adapted clear-zone compound eye in which rays from a distant point source, entering by a large patch of facets, are imperfectly focused upon the receptor... more
The night flying scarabaeid beetle Anoplognathus provides an example of a dark-adapted clear-zone compound eye in which rays from a distant point source, entering by a large patch of facets, are imperfectly focused upon the receptor layer. The optical system of the eye was investigated by six methods, all of which give similar results: (1) ray tracing through structures of known refractive index, (2) measurement of visual fields of single receptors, (3) measurement of the divergence of eyeshine, and (4) of the optomotor response to stripes of decreasing width, and (5) by direct observation of distribution of light within the eye. Finally (6) anatomically there is no single plane upon which an image could be focused. In each ommatidium, beneath the thick cornea, with its short corneal cone, lies a non-homogeneous crystalline cone (range of r. i. 1.442-1.365) that is significant in partially focusing rays across the wide clear zone (340 μm) in the dark-adapted eye. On the proximal sid...
Research Interests: Physics, Optics, Cornea, Medicine, Biological Sciences, and 7 moreAnatomy, Papio, Animals, Eye, Beetles, Compound Eye, and Medical and Health Sciences
1. The compound eye of Cybister is anatomically similar to that of Dytiscus and Hydrophilus . 2. The cornea and crystalline cone in the compound eye of Cybister (Dytiscidae) are composed of layers of unequal refractive index. With the... more
1. The compound eye of Cybister is anatomically similar to that of Dytiscus and Hydrophilus . 2. The cornea and crystalline cone in the compound eye of Cybister (Dytiscidae) are composed of layers of unequal refractive index. With the exception of the outer 10 µ m of the cornea (where they are horizontal) the layers are arranged concentrically around a region of highest refractive index on the axis. 3. The refractive index of the cornea decreases from the central layer (1.724) to the periphery (1.561). The corresponding values for the crystalline cone are 1.435 and 1.366. The refractive index of the area between cornea and cone is 1.343; that of the clear zone is 1.341, and that of the proximal rhabdom is 1.361. 4. Parallel rays entering a facet converge to a focal region which extends from the proximal part of the cornea to the distal part of the cone. Rays cross the clear zone in a direction which depends on the angle to the axis and position on the facet. Up to an angle of 32° to...
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The Antarctic amphipod Orchomene plebs lives in an environment which is characterized by stable temperatures of — 2 to 0 °C, and low ambient light intensities. The microanatomy of the eye of dark adapted and light-adapted animals, kept at... more
The Antarctic amphipod Orchomene plebs lives in an environment which is characterized by stable temperatures of — 2 to 0 °C, and low ambient light intensities. The microanatomy of the eye of dark adapted and light-adapted animals, kept at 0 °C, was studied by light and electron microscopy and compared with that of individuals kept at + 10 °C for 7 h. The eye of a 19 mm (total body length) specimen consists of approximately 260 ommatidia, each measuring 40-50 μm across. The cornea is smooth and external facets are not developed. The crystalline cones, which are the intracellularly secreted products of two cone cells per ommatidium, possess cores that stain more intensely than their peripheral regions. The ultrastructure of the core reveals a regular lattice of 30 nm particles, which are interpreted as glycogen granules. The rhabdom, whose microvilli measure 85-100 nm in diameter, is spindle-shaped and of the centrally fused type. The ratio of rhabdom length: width is 3.2 in light- ...
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Suicide is one of the leading causes of death among adolescents worldwide. Studies on the seasonal pattern of youth suicides are rare and the results are very contradictory and heterogeneous. Generally, suicide methods affect the pattern... more
Suicide is one of the leading causes of death among adolescents worldwide. Studies on the seasonal pattern of youth suicides are rare and the results are very contradictory and heterogeneous. Generally, suicide methods affect the pattern of suicide seasonality. Shooting is the most common suicide method among Finnish adolescents. We investigated whether shooting suicides of victims aged less than 18 years are correlated with a specific period of the year. Also, the seasonal pattern of shooting suicides in adolescents was compared with that of adult victims. Our data comprised 42 adolescent suicide victims and, for comparison, 1,926 adult suicide victims over the years 1988 to 2004 from Northern Finland.Of these, 59.5% (n = 25) of the adolescents and 28.8% (n = 554) of the adults had committed suicide by shooting.We observed that shooting suicides among the under-aged showed a significant peak in autumn (ratio 2.70, 95% CI: 1.97–3.42), while those of adult victims peaked in spring (r...
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. Among malacostracan crustaceans, intracerebral ocelli were first discovered in Isopoda, but they have been more recently reported from a crayfish (Cherax destructor) and a sandhopper (Talitrus saltator). This electron microscopic study... more
. Among malacostracan crustaceans, intracerebral ocelli were first discovered in Isopoda, but they have been more recently reported from a crayfish (Cherax destructor) and a sandhopper (Talitrus saltator). This electron microscopic study increases the number of crayfish taxa in which intracerebral ocelli are now known to occur by two: Astacidae and Cambaridae. These photoreceptors are always integrated into the anteromedio‐dorsal part of the brain and are not visible externally. Each ocellus is made up of 4–5 photoreceptor cells and is characterized by the presence of a fused rhabdom. The occurrence of different kinds of lysosomes in the cytoplasm is indicative of metabolic activity and perhaps membrane turnover. One typical feature of crayfish ocelli is their extraordinary variability in number. This trait is exemplified by individuals of Pacifastacus leniusculus, where as many as 14 ocelli were identified in a single brain. The arrangement of the ocelli is often not symmetrical with regard to the brain's midline and the ocelli always lack dioptric structures. Thus, it is difficult to see how they are involved in image formation. However, further research is needed to determine the precise role of these “hidden” receptors.
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Aging Antarctic icefish is difficult because of their lack of scales and poorly calcified bones. Icefish ages must therefore be estimated from otoliths. We describe a method of reading daily micro-increments in connection with shape, size... more
Aging Antarctic icefish is difficult because of their lack of scales and poorly calcified bones. Icefish ages must therefore be estimated from otoliths. We describe a method of reading daily micro-increments in connection with shape, size and mass analyses of the otoliths of the South Georgia icefish Pseudochaenichthys georgianus. Changes in otolith morphology and mass correlate with fish size and age group. The otolith micro-increment analysis is capable of establishing the age of an icefish by relating the daily micro-increment count to the life history of the fish. Micro-increment measurements and analyses are relatively simple to do by light and scanning electron microscopy and by using micro-densitometer and digitizing equipment. Drastic changes in the life history of an individual are reflected by measurable changes in its otolith micro-increment data as seen in our analyses of age groups 0-VI. The initial drastic change in daily micro-increment shapes and periodicities occur ...
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Research Interests: Depression, Medicine, Psychosomatic Medicine, Finland, Insulin Resistance, and 15 moreHumans, Internal Medicine, Male, Beck Depression Inventory, Middle Aged, Psychosomatic, Adult, Odds ratio, Depressive Symptoms, Cross Sectional Studies, Military Personnel, Severity of Illness Index, confounding, Psychology and Cognitive Sciences, and Medical and Health Sciences
Over the last two decades, ultraviolet radiation levels (UV), reaching the Earth's surface, have been increasing at a rate of... more
Over the last two decades, ultraviolet radiation levels (UV), reaching the Earth's surface, have been increasing at a rate of 1.5% per each 1% loss of the ozone layer. Moreover, artificial UV-sources have also proliferated and contributed to the rising UV-stress that many organisms have to face. To assess how the vertebrate retina responds to an exposure of short wavelength UV, we focused our attention on the rat retina, observing photoreceptor (containing outer and inner segments of rods and cones), inner plexiform, and ganglion cell layers by light and transmission electron microscopy using conventional and cytochemical techniques. We analyzed how cells of the layers in question responded to a 30 min exposure to UV-C and UV-B radiation with doses of 7200 and 590 J/cm(2), respectively. The results show that there are significant changes in the nuclei and cytoplasmic organelles of the exposed retinae when compared with those of the unexposed controls. The changes include an increase in heterochromatin, distension of rough endoplasmic reticulum, mitochondrial disruptions, and increases in the number of myelin bodies. The recorded morphological changes, especially those of the ganglion cells, are suggestive of apoptotic processes and show that the exposure of vertebrate retina to wavelengths ranging from 254 to 312 nm can produce alterations that are likely to impact negatively on the retina's proper functioning.
Research Interests: Materials Engineering, Biophysics, Condensed Matter Physics, Electron Microscopy, Biology, and 15 moreTransmission Electron Microscopy, Medicine, Animals, Male, Retina, Endoplasmic Reticulum, Retinal, Rats, Ozone, Retinal Ganglion Cells, Interdisciplinary Engineering, Light microscopy, Micron, Albino Rat, and Photoreceptor cells
In the late 1960s it was hypothesized that Vikings had been able to navigate the open seas, even when the sun was occluded by clouds or below the sea horizon, by using the angle of polarization of skylight. To detect the direction of... more
In the late 1960s it was hypothesized that Vikings had been able to navigate the open seas, even when the sun was occluded by clouds or below the sea horizon, by using the angle of polarization of skylight. To detect the direction of skylight polarization, they were thought to have made use of birefringent crystals, called "sun-stones," and a large part of the scientific community still firmly believe that Vikings were capable of polarimetric navigation. However, there are some critics who treat the usefulness of skylight polarization for orientation under partly cloudy or twilight conditions with extreme skepticism. One of their counterarguments has been the assumption that solar positions or solar azimuth directions could be estimated quite accurately by the naked eye, even if the sun was behind clouds or below the sea horizon. Thus under partly cloudy or twilight conditions there might have been no serious need for a polarimetric method to determine the position of the sun. The aim of our study was to test quantitatively the validity of this qualitative counterargument. In our psychophysical laboratory experiments, test subjects were confronted with numerous 180 degrees field-of-view color photographs of partly cloudy skies with the sun occluded by clouds or of twilight skies with the sun below the horizon. The task of the subjects was to guess the position or the azimuth direction of the invisible sun with the naked eye. We calculated means and standard deviations of the estimated solar positions and azimuth angles to characterize the accuracy of the visual sun location. Our data do not support the common belief that the invisible sun can be located quite accurately from the celestial brightness and/or color patterns under cloudy or twilight conditions. Although our results underestimate the accuracy of visual sun location by experienced Viking navigators, the mentioned counterargument cannot be taken seriously as a valid criticism of the theory of the alleged polarimetric Viking navigation. Our results, however, do not bear on the polarimetric theory itself.
Research Interests: Psychophysics, Computer Graphics, Image Analysis, Medicine, Humans, and 15 moreDaylight, Scientific Communication, Color Vision, Laboratory experiment, Polarisation, Polarization, Information Storage and Retrieval, Optical physics, Optometry and Ophthalmology, Image Enhancement, Ships, Field of View, Birefringence, Electrical And Electronic Engineering, and Azimuth
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The visual system as an interface between the environment and the living organism can serve as a sensitive indicator especially in studies that deal with effects of radiation. The crab retina as the seat of the photoreceptors and the... more
The visual system as an interface between the environment and the living organism can serve as a sensitive indicator especially in studies that deal with effects of radiation. The crab retina as the seat of the photoreceptors and the lamina ganglionaris as the place of second order neurons were the targets of our study. Conventional specimen preparation techniques for transmission electron microscopy (TEM) are adequate to preserve any modifications that may occur as a consequence of the experimental treatment. In this study we analyzed by TEM how retinal and lamina ganglionaris cells of the crab Ucides cordatus responded to a 30 min exposure to ultraviolet C (UV-C) and ultraviolet B (UV-B) radiation with doses of 7200 and 590J/cm(2), respectively. The results show that damaged cells occurred in both retina and lamina ganglionaris, but that the retinal cells were affected to a greater extent. Morphological alterations of the pigment granules and an increase in the quantity of lipid droplets of the retinal cells were also observed. Additional changes include an increase in heterochromatin, nuclear karyolyses and karyorrhexes, distention of rough endoplasmic reticulum and mitochondrial disruptions. The observed morphological changes are indicative of apoptotic processes and show that an exposure to light of wavelengths of 254 and 312 nm may be injurious to the visual system of invertebrates.
Research Interests: Materials Engineering, Biophysics, Condensed Matter Physics, Electron Microscopy, Biology, and 15 moreTransmission Electron Microscopy, Medicine, Ultraviolet, Animals, Male, Retina, Endoplasmic Reticulum, Retinal, Neurons, Ultrastructure, Brachyura, Second Order, Crustaceans, Interdisciplinary Engineering, and Micron
The collembolan Gomphiocephalus hodgsoni is one of a few hexapods occurring in Antarctica. Male and female individuals do not differ with regard to their eyes. Both possess eight single-lens eyes. In the adults, each lens has a diameter... more
The collembolan Gomphiocephalus hodgsoni is one of a few hexapods occurring in Antarctica. Male and female individuals do not differ with regard to their eyes. Both possess eight single-lens eyes. In the adults, each lens has a diameter of 10–12 μm and covers an almost spherical crystalline cone made up of four unequal moieties. When we accepted homogenous refractive indices, known
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Research Interests: Mechanical Engineering, Geology, Remote Sensing, Mirror Symmetry, Polarimetry, and 15 moreImage Analysis, Medicine, Optical Imaging, Vision, Applied Optics, Optical physics, RADIANCE, Sky, Field of View, Polarized Light Microscopy, Atmospheric Optics, Electrical And Electronic Engineering, Forest Canopy, Azimuth, and Atmospheric Scattering Model
Research Interests: Botany, Food Science, Biology, Medicine, Population, and 3 moreFoods, Amino Acid Profile, and Leucine
Research Interests: Medicine, Logistic Regression, Probability, Pregnancy, Humans, and 15 moreHypertension, Diabetes mellitus, Blood Pressure, Female, Body Mass Index, Clinical Sciences, Adult, Oral Glucose Tolerance Test, Parity, Glucose Tolerance Test, Glucose Intolerance, Confidence Interval, Diastolic Blood Pressure, Glucose tolerance, and systole
The larvae, pupae and adult of the world’s largest hornet Vespa mandarinia are a nutritious food popular among the different ethnic communities of Nagaland. The traditional method of collecting, rearing and consuming V. mandarinia still... more
The larvae, pupae and adult of the world’s largest hornet Vespa mandarinia are a nutritious food popular among the different ethnic communities of Nagaland. The traditional method of collecting, rearing and consuming V. mandarinia still persists among the tribal people. Semi-domestication of V. mandarinia practiced in the region has been found to facilitate the production of hornets for socio-economic purposes; thereby contributing to conservation and a sustainable utilisation of the hornets. Eight to nine combs measuring 30-45 cm in diameter are usually harvested, each of which fetching an amount of Rs. 10,000-50,000. The present investigation provides data on the crude protein content of the larvae and pupae which amounts to 52.82 and 60.99%, respectively, suggesting that hornet grubs represent an important source of nutrition. While V. mandarinia are considered as pest in western countries and most of East Asia, the present study suggests hornets as a promising alternative food i...
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Background References to insects in myths, stories, and idioms can be found in almost any culture, but with regard to references involving honey bee species in the Asia-Australian region, little information is available. Such references... more
Background References to insects in myths, stories, and idioms can be found in almost any culture, but with regard to references involving honey bee species in the Asia-Australian region, little information is available. Such references to bees can be highly informative by revealing attitudes of admiration, fear, ignorance, or even revulsion towards these insects. Results The subject is briefly reviewed and examples of references to bees of selected cultural communities are given. Although folkloristic references to honey bees were found to be mostly positive highlighting fearlessness, cleverness, and industriousness of the bees, some also touch upon their ability to cause pain. Conclusions Owing to the decreasing contacts and increasing alienization regarding insects generally, a plea is made to collect whatever information is still available about references to bees in songs, myths, stories, proverbs, and idioms and to compare such uses from different regions, e.g., North and Sout...
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Simple Summary It has been reported that members from all vertebrate classes occasionally attempt copulations with dead male or female individuals, but until now no reliable report exists that insects too may show such necrophilic... more
Simple Summary It has been reported that members from all vertebrate classes occasionally attempt copulations with dead male or female individuals, but until now no reliable report exists that insects too may show such necrophilic behaviour. We observed and described how a male cicada from Jinxiu town in southern China repeatedly tried to mate with a dead male conspecific. There are several ways to explain this unusual behaviour, but we believe that possibly a lack of females, the somewhat larger than normal size of the dead male individual and the latter’s passivity have been involved. This is the first report of a male insect mounting a dead male and attempting to copulate with it. Abstract The unusual case of a male Cryptotympana atrata cicada from China attempting to mate with a dead male conspecific is described and illustrated. Although hitherto unreported, necrophilic behaviour in the form of an attempted necrocoitus, involving dead male or female corpses, may not be as isola...
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In this study, cricket chitosan was used as a prebiotic. Lactobacillus fermentum, Lactobacillus acidophilus, and Bifidobacterium adolescentis were identified as probiotic bacteria. Cricket chitin was deacetylated to chitosan and added to... more
In this study, cricket chitosan was used as a prebiotic. Lactobacillus fermentum, Lactobacillus acidophilus, and Bifidobacterium adolescentis were identified as probiotic bacteria. Cricket chitin was deacetylated to chitosan and added to either De Man Rogosa and Sharpe or Salmonella/Shigella bacterial growth media at the rates of 1%, 5%, 10%, or 20% to obtain chitosan-supplemented media. The growth of the probiotic bacteria was monitored on chitosan-supplemented media after 6, 12, 24, and 48 h upon incubation at 37 °C. Growth of Salmonella typhi in the presence of probiotic bacteria in chitosan-supplemented media was evaluated under similar conditions to those of the growth of probiotic bacteria by measuring growth inhibition zones (in mm) around the bacterial colonies. All chitosan concentrations significantly increased the populations of probiotic bacteria and decreased the populations of pathogenic bacteria. During growth, there was a significant pH change in the media with all p...
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Writing a 200-word abstract about the life of a 76-year-old scientist, in which luck played a significant role, is not an easy task. Even knowing this scientist well (for I am talking about myself) does not make it any easier. When you... more
Writing a 200-word abstract about the life of a 76-year-old scientist, in which luck played a significant role, is not an easy task. Even knowing this scientist well (for I am talking about myself) does not make it any easier. When you notice something is not right, do not fear changing your major (I changed twice before settling on Fisheries and Marine Science). For my PhD in neurobiology, I changed again. Grab opportunities when they arise. Join field trips and expeditions, attend conferences, and spread your interests widely. Spend time in different countries, learn new techniques and languages, and always stay curious. Remain humble. I carried out speleological research in Jamaica and France, participated in a 4-month South Atlantic Fisheries Research Trip and a 3-month Bioluminescence Expedition to the Moluccas, and pioneered comparative physiological and functional anatomical research in Antarctica and the Arctic. Be adventurous. My ethnobiological field work took me to Papua ...
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Cultural and ritual uses of animals beyond those for food and medicine should not be dismissed if we wish to understand the pressure that wildlife is under. We documented such uses for the Tangsa and Wancho tribals of Eastern Arunachal... more
Cultural and ritual uses of animals beyond those for food and medicine should not be dismissed if we wish to understand the pressure that wildlife is under. We documented such uses for the Tangsa and Wancho tribals of Eastern Arunachal Pradesh (India). Group discussions with assembled members of 10 accessible villages in each of the tribal areas were carried out in 2015 and 2016. Vernacular names of culturally important species were noted and details of hunting practices were recorded. The different uses of animals and their parts during rituals and festivals and their significance in decorations and adornments, in supernatural beliefs and in connection with tribal folklore (stories) are documented. Folklore helps us understand why some species are hunted and consumed while others for no apparent reason are killed or simply ignored. Similarities as well as differences between the two tribes were recorded and possible reasons for the differences are given. The roles that the governme...
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An unusual specimen of Aglais urticae, lacking characteristic UV-reflecting parafocal eyespot elements along the margins of both fore and hind wings, is compared with normal, wild-type specimens. Wing scales, responsible for generating... more
An unusual specimen of Aglais urticae, lacking characteristic UV-reflecting parafocal eyespot elements along the margins of both fore and hind wings, is compared with normal, wild-type specimens. Wing scales, responsible for generating structural coloration, aremissing in the abnormal individual and have been replaced with a type that is typical of pigment-based colours. Other modifications seen in the abnormal specimen include firstly, a distal expansion of a uniformly brown region, that otherwise occupies a proximal position on the hind wings of the wild type, and secondly, the lack of a characteristic orange cross-vein band that runs proximal to the parafocal eyespot elements on the hindwing. The differences in coloration between abnormal and wild type are seen as evidence of a proximal-distal developmental axis (originally proposed by Nijhout 1991) and support a view recently aired by Beldade and Brakefield (2003). It is now clear that studies on butterfly eyespot development mu...
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Research Interests: Sociology, Social and Cultural Anthropology, Folk Medicine, Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Traditional Medicine, and 11 moreInvertebrates, Biology, Food and Nutrition, Health, Alternative Therapies, Medicine, Ethnomedicine, Alternative Medicine, Public health systems and services research, Traditional healing, and Invertebrate
There is growing interest in insects as human food in academia, food and agricultural industries, public institutions and the public at large. Yet many of the words and concepts used to describe these organisms and the human practices... more
There is growing interest in insects as human food in academia, food and agricultural industries, public institutions and the public at large. Yet many of the words and concepts used to describe these organisms and the human practices surrounding them are still rudimentary, compared to the diversity of the organisms themselves and the existing complexity and rapid evolution of the practices they aim to describe. The goals of this paper are to: (1) show how the roots of the term ‘entomophagy’ and its uses have evolved over time; (2) illustrate some of the term’s problems that necessitate its review; and (3) offer recommendations for use of the term in future research and other practice. Our paper offers a brief historical review of insect eating as described by certain Western cultural sources, explores some of the taxonomic ambiguities and challenges surrounding the category ‘insects’, and ultimately argues for more precise and contextual terminology in this both richly traditional ...