The annual feeding activity on paper baits of subterranean termites in deserti®ed (degraded-shrub dominated ecosystems) and relatively undegraded black-grama (Bouteloua eriopoda) grasslands was measured over six years on 12 sites. There were no signi®cant differences in mass losses from termite baits among the deserti®ed and undeserti®ed sites. Mass of paper consumed by termites on two sites do...

We designed a comparative study to unravel the phylogeography of two Alpine endemic spiders characterized by a different degree of adaptation to subterranean life: Troglohyphantes vignai (Araneae, Linyphiidae) and Pimoa rupicola (Araneae, Pimoidae), the latter showing minor adaptation to hypogean life. We sampled populations of the model species in caves and other subterranean habitats across t...

The region of Southern Ethiopia (Borana) and Northern Kenya (Marsabit) is characterised by erratic rainfall, limited surface water, aridity, frequent droughts. An important adaptive response to these conditions, uncertain antiquity, has been the hand-excavation a sequence deep wells at key locations often along seasonal riverbeds valley bottoms where subterranean aquifers can be tapped. Sophist...

Many ant species construct subterranean nests. The presence of their nests may explain soil respiration "hot spots", an important factor in the high CO2 efflux from tropical forests. However, no studies have directly measured CO2 efflux from ant nests. We established 61 experimental plots containing 13 subterranean ant species to evaluate the CO2 efflux from subterranean ant nests in a tropical...

The efÞcacy and nonrepellency of indoxacarb (150 SC, 150 g [AI]/liter) and Þpronil (Termidor SC, 9.1% [AI]) against Þeld-collected eastern subterranean termite,Reticulitermes flavipes (Kollar), and the Formosan subterranean termite,Coptotermes formosanus Shiraki, were evaluated for mortality and penetration into treated soil in laboratory glass tube bioassays. Both insecticides were tested at Þ...

BACKGROUND Some species of obligate cavernicolous beetles are known to possess a unique feature-a contraction of the larval cycle. In contrast to many other subterranean beetles, life-cycle contraction in Trechini ground beetles (Carabidae) is correlated with a reduction in the number of eggs and a drastic reduction in the number of ovarioles. This remarkable peculiarity has only been reported ...

Copepods have been poorly studied in subterranean habitats in Korea. Previous records have indicated mostly the presence of species already described from Japan, with very few endemic elements. This commonality has usually been explained by repeated dispersal across the land bridges that connected the two countries several times during the Pleistocene glacial cycles. However, the Korean Peninsu...

Carotenoids are some of the commonest pigments found in nature. They are produced only by plants, both autotrophic and heterotrophic, whereas animals obtain them through the food they eat. These pigments may, however, in the latter undergo further conversion as a result, for example, of oxidation. Various functions have been ascribed to carotenoids ranging from their participation in the photos...

relief wells are used extensively to relieve excess hydrostatic pressure in pervious foundation strata overlain by impervious top strata, conditions which often exist landward of levees and downstream of dams and hydraulic structures. placing well outlets in below-surface trenches or collector pipes helps dry up seepage areas downstream of levees and dams. relief wells are often used in combina...

Sulfur and oxygen isotopes were employed to identify SO42- sources in surface water and groundwater in the Babu subterranean river basin (BSRB). Our study revealed SO42- enrichment in the BSRB waters compared with adjacent areas. The SO42- in some samples originated mainly from precipitation; in others, it was derived mainly from sulfide dissolution in coal seams or from gypsum dissolution. In ...