Quantifying the number of selective sweeps and their combined effects on genomic diversity in humans and other great apes is notoriously difficult. Here we address the question using a comparative approach to contrast diversity patterns according to the distance from genes in all great ape taxa. The extent of diversity reduction near genes compared with the rest of intergenic sequences is great...

Four orangutans (1 juvenile, 2 subadults, and 1 adult) and ten 6-8-year-old children were tested in 4 liquid conservation tasks of increasing levels of difficulty. Task difficulty depended on the type of transformation (continuous vs. discontinuous quantities) and the relative contrast between the shapes of the containers. Results indicate that orangutans did not display conservation in the str...

Captive breeding is vital for primate conservation, with modern zoos serving a crucial role in populations of threatened species and educating the general public. However, captive can experience welfare issues that may also undermine their reproductive success. To enhance wellbeing endangered zoo primates, we conducted study to assess effects new scent enrichment program on red-ruffed lemurs (V...

Few studies have investigated Toxoplasma gondii infections in bat populations and none have reported its presence in protected British bat species. Using a collection of dead/euthanased bats collected from Lancashire, UK, two species of bats (Pipistrellus pipistrellus and Pipistrellus pygmaeus) were tested using a highly sensitive SAG1-PCR method specific for detection of T. gondii DNA (n=77; 7...

Urbanisation is one of the most dramatic forms of land use change which relatively few species can adapt to. Determining how and why species respond differently to urban habitats is important in predicting future biodiversity loss as urban areas rapidly expand. Understanding how morphological or behavioural traits can influence species adaptability to the built environment may enable us to impr...

Asian slow lorises are found in zoos and rescue centres worldwide with Nycticebus pygmaeus, the pygmy slow loris, boasting the largest population in captivity. Diet are reportedly high in fruit and concentrates and low in insects and exudates. Wild feeding studies place insects, nectar, and gums as the most important diet components. Captive populations also show high incidences of health affli...

Twenty-nine populations of Xiphophorus fishes representing nine species of northern swordtails, one southern swordtail and a platyfish were assayed electrophoretically for allozyme variation. Phylogenetic relationships were inferred using parsimony and likeUhood analysis of gene frequency characters, as well as Fitch-Margoliash, minimum evolution and neighbor-joining analyses of genetic distanc...