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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Leafcutting Ant Diet Selection: The Role Of Nutrients, Water, And Secondary Chemistry, Jerome J. Howard
Leafcutting Ant Diet Selection: The Role Of Nutrients, Water, And Secondary Chemistry, Jerome J. Howard
Biological Sciences Faculty Publications
The relationship of plant secondary chemistry, water content, and nutrient content to the palatability of leaves to the leafcutting ant Atta cephalotes was determined in a study of individuals from 50 woody plant species in tropical dry forest of Costa Rica. The study took place during the yearly period of maximum leaf harvest, in the early rainy season. The palatability of plants was determined by presenting leaf disks to ants on active foraging trails of three ant colonies. The distribution of several classes of polar secondary compounds in leaf samples was determined using chemical spot tests, and that of ant- …
Thermal Dependence Of Maximal Ca2+-Activated Force In Skinned Muscle Fibres Of The Toad Bufo Marinus Acclimated At Different Temperatures, Bernard Rees
Biological Sciences Faculty Publications
Mechanically skinned muscle fibres from the twitch region of the iliofibularis muscle of cool- (16 +/- 1 degree C) and warm- (32 +/- 1 degree C) acclimated cane toads (Bufo marinus) were activated maximally by Ca2+ in solutions of different pH and at different temperatures (approx. 1-35 degrees C). Acclimation of up to 12 weeks at 16 degrees C and up to 8 weeks at 32 degrees C did not modify the marked thermal dependence of isometric force in the skeletal muscle fibres of the cane toad. The prominent decline of maximum Ca2+-activated force at lower temperatures, a property which …