Issues
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Cover image
Cover Image
Cover: Like the struts of a bridge, the internal architecture of bone transmits forces generated by the actions of muscles and the interaction between an animal and the world. In the jaw, forces are generated during chewing and are partially determined by the toughness and hardness of foods. Using microcomputed tomography, Terhune et al. (jeb220988) demonstrate that the internal bony architecture of the rabbit jaw (shown here, where warmer colors – reds, oranges – represent thicker bone and cooler colors – blues, purples – indicate thinner bone) varies in relation to dietary resistance and to the timing of eating resistant foods during growth. Photo credit: Claire Terhune.
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INSIDE JEB
OUTSIDE JEB
REVIEW
The control of metabolic traits by octopamine and tyramine in invertebrates
Summary: The monoamines octopamine and tyramine play a pivotal role in the control of metabolism in invertebrates by regulating both energy intake and energy expenditure.
SHORT COMMUNICATIONS
Relationships between the peak hypoxic ventilatory response and critical O2 tension in larval and adult zebrafish (Danio rerio)
Summary: The relationship between critical O2 tension and peak hypoxic ventilatory response is dependent on life history stage in zebrafish.
Compensatory changes in villus morphology of lactating Mus musculus in response to insufficient dietary protein
Summary: Insufficient dietary protein is linked to changes in enterocyte morphology resulting in increased villus height and absorptive surface in lactating mice; this flexibility may support compensatory protein assimilation through increased production of duodenally localized enzymes.
Whale jaw joint is a shock absorber
Highlighted Article: The TMJ of rorqual whales has an elastic fibrocartilage pad hypothesized to absorb shock during engulfment and aid in closing jaws via elastic recoil.
RESEARCH ARTICLES
Phenotypic flexibility of metabolic rate and evaporative water loss does not vary across a climatic gradient in an Afrotropical passerine bird
Summary: Reaction norms for metabolic rate and evaporative water loss in response to thermal acclimation do not vary among populations across a climatic gradient in a subtropical, passerine bird.
Experimental modification of morphology reveals the effects of the zygosphene–zygantrum joint on the range of motion of snake vertebrae
Summary: The zygosphene–zygantrum joint is distinctive and universal in snake vertebrae; experimentally removing these structures revealed that they limit yaw and prevent vertebrae from reaching positions where roll can occur.
Temperature affects susceptibility of intertidal limpets to bird predation
Highlighted Article: Experiments with a live captive predator, a predator mimic and direct measurements of predatory strike force show that body temperature affects susceptibility to bird predation for an intertidal limpet.
When the noise goes on: received sound energy predicts sperm whale responses to both intermittent and continuous navy sonar
Summary: Experimental exposure of sperm whales to continuous and pulsed sonar reveals that total pulse energy predicts cessation of foraging better than pulse amplitude or duty cycle.
Internal architecture of the mandibular condyle of rabbits is related to dietary resistance during growth
Summary: The trabecular structure of the mandibular condyle varies between rabbit groups raised on diets that differ in their mechanical properties and the timing of the introduction of mechanically challenging foods.
Dynamic multimodal interactions in navigating wood ants: what do path details tell us about cue integration?
Summary: Ants show a flexible response to multimodal information depending on the sensori-motor contingencies of the navigation task.
The ghost of temperature past: interactive effects of previous and current thermal conditions on gene expression in Manduca sexta
Summary: Repeated high temperature exposure has diverse consequences for gene expression patterns in two recently diverged populations of Manduca sexta, leading to thermal acclimation or increased stress responses.
Distinct navigation behaviors in Aedes, Anopheles and Culex mosquito larvae
Summary: Investigation of six species of disease vector mosquito larvae showed that each species exhibited strikingly different exploration behaviors. However, species behaved similarly when navigating to preferred cues.
Intraspecific variation in sensitivity to food availability and temperature-induced phenotypic plasticity in the rotifer Keratella cochlearis
Summary: Two neighboring populations of the widespread rotifer Keratella cochlearis exhibit differences in sensitivity to food availability with substantial phenotypic differences between them.
Limb dynamics in agility jumps of beginner and advanced dogs
Summary: Limb dynamics in agility jumps of beginner and advanced dogs reveal general strategies of limb control and highlight differences between levels of skill during landing.
Preferential intracellular pH regulation is a common trait amongst fishes exposed to high environmental CO2
Highlighted Article: Preferential intracellular pH regulation is a common strategy of acid–base regulation in fishes acutely exposed to environmental PCO2 >4 kPa.
The effect of diet change and insulin dysregulation on the faecal microbiome of ponies
Summary: Examination of the faecal microbiome of ponies introduced to pasture reveals that metabolically healthy ponies have greater microbial stability when challenged with this dietary change, compared with ponies with insulin dysregulation.
Sensory perception in a changing world – join us in Liverpool in March 2025
We are excited to invite you to a unique scientific conference, celebrating the 100-year anniversary of The Company of Biologists, and bringing together our different communities. The conference will incorporate the JEB Symposium Sensory Perception in a Changing World and the SEB satellite meeting. Find out more and register to join us in March 2025 in Liverpool, UK. Register by 28 February 2025.
Extraordinary creatures: mantis shrimp
In our new Conversation series focusing on extraordinary creatures, Tom Cronin and Sheila Patek tell us about the incredible biology of mantis shrimp, from their complex vision to their powerful striking abilities.
Behaviour as a physiological process
In this Commentary, Shamil Debaere & colleagues argue the case for integration of behaviour into animal physiology, and advocate for behaviour to be considered as a physiological process.
Tiny ring-necked snakes keep warm heads despite their size
Some ectotherms are able to raise the temperature of certain body parts above the temperature of other regions & now Christian Cox and Albert Chung, with undergraduates from the University of Virginia, reveal that the heads of tiny ring-necked snakes can be 2.1C warmer than their tails, even though they are only 20cm long.
