Issues
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Cover image
Cover Image
Cover: The Wallum of southeast Queensland, Australia, is a naturally very low calcium freshwater ecosystem, in which the scarlet-sided pobblebonk (Limnodynastes terraereginae) and other ‘acid frog’ species survive in waters as acidic as pH 3.0. For most water-breathing animals, exposure to very low aquatic pH can damage gills, leading to a fatal loss of body sodium, which is exacerbated by low environmental calcium levels. Hird et al. (jeb244376) suggest that pobblebonk larvae have adaptations to the calcium transport pathway in the gills that protect intercellular junctions against such acid-induced damage. Photo credit: Ben Revell.
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CONVERSATION
METHODS & TECHNIQUES
A terrain treadmill to study animal locomotion through large obstacles
Summary: By keeping an animal on top of an obstacle-laden sphere, a ‘terrain treadmill’ enables high-resolution observation of locomotion through obstacles as large as animals over a long time and distance.
Respirometry protocols for avian thermoregulation at high air temperatures: stepped and steady-state profiles yield similar results
Summary: Patterns of thermoregulation at air temperatures approaching or exceeding body temperature in a passerine bird are similar when using a stepped series of progressively increasing air temperatures or continuous exposure for several hours to each air temperature setpoint.
Generating spatiotemporal patterns of linearly polarised light at high frame rates for insect vision research
Summary: Design of a versatile visual stimulation device for presenting moving patterns of polarised light, and demonstration of its use to characterise polarisation sensitivity in butterfly photoreceptors and blowfly motion-sensitive interneurons.
RESEARCH ARTICLES
The gut parasite Nosema ceranae impairs olfactory learning in bumblebees
Summary: The bee parasite Nosema ceranae reduces olfactory learning in bumblebees. This sublethal effect can compromise colony foraging success and chemical communication between bees, ultimately leading to colony collapse.
Physiological responses and adjustments of corals to strong seasonal temperature variations (20–28°C)
Highlighted Article: Substantial reduction of metabolic functions rather than thermal compensation is the response of corals to strong seasonal temperature reductions.
The role of environmental calcium in the extreme acid tolerance of northern banjo frog (Limnodynastes terraereginae) larvae
Summary: Tolerance of naturally acidic, dilute and soft water by larvae of the frog Limnodynastes terraereginae involves adaptations to the branchial calcium transport pathway, which protect intercellular junctions against damage.
Obligatory homeothermy of mesic habitat-adapted African striped mice, Rhabdomys pumilio, is governed by seasonal basal metabolism and year-round ‘thermogenic readiness’ of brown adipose tissue
Highlighted Article: Unpredictable cold spells require African striped mice to maintain high heat production capacity throughout the year, achieved through nuanced trade-offs between organ size and metabolic activity.
A new theoretical performance landscape for suction feeding reveals adaptive kinematics in a natural population of reef damselfish
Highlighted Article: The in situ feeding performance of Chromis viridis indicates that the population resides close to a local performance peak.
Flying on empty: reduced mitochondrial function and flight capacity in food-deprived monarch butterflies
Summary: Low food availability, but not infection, negatively affects mitochondrial function and flight performance in monarch butterflies, with potential implications for migration, fitness and population dynamics.
The mechanical and morphological properties of systemic and pulmonary arteries differ in the Madagascar ground boa, a snake without ventricular pressure separation
Summary: Although pulmonary blood pressure and systemic blood pressure are the same in the Madagascar ground boa because of the lack of intraventricular pressure separation, aorta and pulmonary artery vessel walls have different morphologies.
Influence of caste and subcaste characteristics on locomotion in the ant Camponotus fellah
Summary: Castes and subcastes of Camponotus fellah ants are clearly distinguished in form characteristics and body size. Despite these morphometric variations, all ants, including males, show the same general walking characteristics.
The trunk–tail junctional region in Ciona larvae autonomously expresses tail-beating bursts at ∼20 second intervals
Summary: Mid-piece fragments of tadpole larvae of the ascidian Ciona, lacking most of the anterior trunk and posterior tail, autonomously and periodically express tail-beating bursts.
Factors affecting the biosynthesis and emission of a Drosophila pheromone
Summary: The biosynthesis and emission of a key Drosophila pheromone are differentially affected by ageing, social context, and early exposure to this pheromone and to microbes.
Mild hypoxia exposure impacts peripheral serotonin uptake and degradation in Gulf toadfish (Opsanus beta)
Highlighted Article: During hypoxia, toadfish experience lower plasma serotonin concentrations and a corresponding increase in gill serotonin uptake and degradation, suggesting that the gill regulates circulating serotonin during hypoxia.
CORRECTION
Reflections on a year of supporting and promoting our early-career researchers

In this Editorial, editors Patricia Wright, Michaela Handel and Craig Franklin reflect on what JEB has done over the last year to support and promote the future of comparative physiology and biomechanics – our inspiring early-career researchers – through workshops, grants, special issues and award sponsorship.
Thanking our reviewers in 2024
A big thank you to everyone who reviewed for JEB in 2024.
Ecophysiological responses to heat waves in the marine intertidal zone

Heat waves are intensifying with climate change and intertidal zones are the only ecosystem to experience both atmospheric and marine heat waves. In this Review, Jonathon Stillman and colleagues highlight the physiological impacts of heat waves on intertidal organisms, including effects on mortality, plasticity and adaptation.
Snakes require super-stretchy neck skin to consume massive mouthfuls

Some snakes are capable of gulping down meals that are far larger than their heads in a single mouthful and now Jarrod Petersen, Lucy Campbell and Thomas Roberts show that super-stretchy neck skin is likely one of the key factors that allowed boa constrictors and egg-eating snakes to evolve this extraordinary feat.
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.