Many hibernating bats in thermally stable, subterranean roosts have experienced precipitous declines from white-nose syndrome (WNS). However, some WNS-affected species also use thermally unstable roosts during winter that may impact their torpor patterns and WNS susceptibility. From November to March 2017-19, we used temperature-sensitive transmitters to document winter torpor patterns of tricolored bats (Perimyotis subflavus) […]
The ideal bacteriophages (phages) for the treatment of bacterial disease (phage therapy) would bypass bacterial evolution to phage resistance. However, this feature (called a hyper-aggression feature) has never been observed to our knowledge. Here, we microbiologically characterize, fractionate, genomically classify, and perform electron microscopy of the newly isolated Bacillus thuringiensis phage 0524phi7-1, which we find […]
Hibernating bears show remarkable metabolic suppression. Their decline in core body temperature (T (b) ) is moderate (from 38°C to 30-35°C), but their metabolism declines as much as 75%. To understand the role of sleep in this hypometabolic state, we recorded biotelemetrically EEG, EOG and EMG data over 3500 days from 16 captive American black […]
Understanding how organisms respond to their environments is challenging, especially due to the complex processes related to metabolism, energetics, and reproduction. Glucocorticoids (GCs) are metabolic hormones that provide insight into internal process and may trigger a variety of behaviors. To understand how changes to the environment influence wildlife, we must ideally measure levels of GCs […]
(1) Background: Hibernation in Lutrasil-covered enclosures led to elevated mortality rates for Cornu aspersum on Romanian farms. This two-year study evaluated the feasibility of adapting indoor hibernation technology to the Italian outdoor snail farming (IOSF) system as a solution for overwintering mature C. aspersum snails. (2) Methods: Body weight, survival rates, and mortality factors during […]