The evolutionary history of sexual selection in the geologic past is poorly documented based on quantification, largely because of difficulty in sexing fossil specimens. Even such essential ecological parameters as adult sex ratio (ASR) and sexual size dimorphism (SSD) are rarely quantified, despite their implications for sexual selection. To enable their estimation, we propose a method for unb...

The mitotic spindle is a diamond-shaped molecular apparatus crucial for chromosomal segregation. The regulation of spindle length is well studied, but little is known about spindle width. Previous studies suggested that the spindle can self-organize to maintain a constant aspect ratio between its length and width against physical perturbations. Here we determine the widths of metaphase spindles...

Dissection and chemical analysis data from 197 bulls of 15 breedtypes were used to examine the distribution of total fat (TOTFAT) among carcass fat (CFAT), viscera fat (VIF), kidney plus pelvic fat (KPF) and blood fat (BLF). The bulls were obtained from a five-breed diallel involving Angus, Brahman, Hereford, Holstein and Jersey; reciprocal crosses were pooled. One or two bulls of each breedtyp...

A quantitative estimate of infolding and of its effect on electrical characteristics in axons of different sizes is given by expressions based on the allometric equation, y = ax^. These expressions can be used to describe the effect of stretching the axon and the size dependence of the axo-somatic conductance ratio. The parameters in the allometric equation are determined for a range of axon si...

Alkaline phosphatase activity (APA), tissue P, N and C were determined for 23 species of benthic marine macrophytes (22 macroalgae, 1 seagrass). In addition, estimates of the surface area /volume ratio (SA:V) of these species were derived from experimental work and from the literature. The tissue nutrient content (especially P) does not explain differences in APA among the species of marine mac...

Previous efforts to use the Euler equation to estimate maximum population growth rates (variously symbolized as either r, r(m), or r(max)) have used simplified models of survivorship that neglect differences in survivorship schedules among species. In particular, several recent analyses have used either an exponential model of survivorship or a step function model in which all individuals live ...

Department of Animal Science,Faculty of Agriculture,University of Uyo, Uyo, Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria A total of 40 New Zealand white rabbits were used in a study where prediction models were developed for predicting live weight and evaluating the carcass. In the study, six body measurements namely, body length, thigh circumference, shank length, chest width, body circumference and girth were de...

The surface area-to-volume ratio of cells is one of the key factors affecting fundamental biological processes and, thus, fitness of unicellular organisms. One of the general models for allometric increase in surface-to-volume scaling involves fractal-like elaboration of cellular surfaces. However, specific data illustrating this pattern in natural populations of the unicellular organisms have ...

The relative growth of the fiddler crab Uca sindensis in Pohl Port was studied. Ten 0.5 m2 quadrates were randomly sampled monthly during low tide periods from October 2009 to September 2010. A total of 840 crabs, 449 (53.45%) males and 391(46.5%) ‌ females, were sampled. The Carapace width of males ranged from 5.5 to13.5 mm (mean ± SD) (8.92 ± 2.04), and of females from 5.0 to 11.5 mm (mean ± ...