Groups of six to nine Merino Summary lambs were weaned in September (May drop) and December (September drop) on to three types of irrigated perennial pastureperennial ryegrass (Lolium perenne), Ladino white clover (Trifolium repens) and lucerne (Medicago sativa), and one irrigated annual pasture-subterranean clover ( Trifolium subterraneum) . The weight gain of the weaners on white clover was s...

Field observations suggested that subterranean termites might follow a concentration gradient of attractive material to find decaying wood. Laboratory cultures of the brown rot fungus, Lenzites trabea Pers. ex. Fr., on pine blocks formed a material attractive to the eastern subterranean termites, Reticulitermes flavipes (Kol.) and R. virginicus Banks, and a Costa Rican termite, Nasutitermes col...

A new hypogean species of Trechus Clairville, Trechus arrecheai sp. nov., is described from the Iberian Peninsula. It was captured by subterranean pitfall traps in a non-calcareous Superficial Subterranean Habitat from the Moncayo Massif (Zaragoza, Spain). Data on the accompanying fauna are provided and the biogeographical implications of this discovery are discussed. A synthesis of the data ab...

BACKGROUND Chronic particulate matter (PM) exposure is correlated to various health effects, even at low amounts. WHO has defined PM concentration limits as daily and annual mean values which were made legally binding in the European Union. While many studies have focused on PM concentrations in special environments, little is known about the average PM- exposure for both employees and passenge...

The degradation of subterranean habitats is believed to represent a serious threat for the conservation of obligate subterranean dwellers (troglobites), many of which are short-range endemics. However, while the factors influencing cave biodiversity remain largely unknown, the influence of the surrounding landscape and patterns of subterranean connectivity of terrestrial troglobitic communities...

The underground environment imposes unique demands on life that have led subterranean species to evolve specialized traits, many of which evolved convergently. We studied convergence in evolutionary rate in subterranean mammals in order to associate phenotypic evolution with specific genetic regions. We identified a strong excess of vision- and skin-related genes that changed at accelerated rat...

Submarine groundwater discharge (SGD) nutrient fluxes from un-sewered suburban landscapes pose a significant eutrophication risk to coastal waters. In unconsolidated coastal aquifers, nutrients recharged to groundwater undergo diffuse discharge to the coastline during SGD. Defining pathways of nutrient attenuation is required for land management professionals to take effective nutrient remediat...

The water louse Asellus aquaticus is a widespread, euryoecious species, mostly uniform throughout its range. However, six subspecies are known from the Dinaric karst in the northwestern Balkans. They include some specialized subterranean populations. The pattern of genetic variation among subterranean and surface populations in this hydrographically highly fragmented karst region was investigat...

Coastal waters are severely threatened by nitrogen (N) loading from direct groundwater discharge. The subterranean estuary, the mixing zone of fresh groundwater and sea water in a coastal aquifer, has a high potential to remove substantial N. A network of piezometers was used to characterize the denitrification capacity and groundwater flow paths in the subterranean estuary below a Rhode Island...