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Bilal A, Butt A, Kazam A, Ali S, Isha, Chang YC. Investigating the Influence of Anthropogenic Activities on Behavioral Changes of an Orb Web Spider ( Neoscona vigilans). INSECTS 2024; 15:609. [PMID: 39194814 DOI: 10.3390/insects15080609] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/19/2024] [Revised: 08/08/2024] [Accepted: 08/11/2024] [Indexed: 08/29/2024]
Abstract
Orb web spiders are common and highly diversified animals found in almost all habitats. They have remarkable plasticity against biotic and abiotic factors, making them excellent indicators of environmental health. The web creation behavior of spiders is influenced by disturbances in the environment. The aim of this research was to observe the alteration in the web-building behavior of Neoscona vigilans caused by human activities, specifically traffic disturbances. Spider webs were located and photographed at nighttime along the roadside, and their web characteristics were calculated. Spiders were captured from webs for their body measurements. Spider fourth leg length, carapace width, and body length had a significant association with web size and diameter, CTL, capture area, and mesh size. The quantity of trapped prey, the height of the plant, and the foliage radius increased with the distance from the road. Conversely, anchor points and web elevation from the ground dropped. The highest and lowest proportions of anomalies (modifications/defects) were recorded as holes (52.7%) in 105 webs (100%) and supernumerary (0.7%) in 55 webs (52.4%), respectively. Road disturbance had a negative influence on the spider's behavior as the webs formed in close proximity to the road had a higher frequency of anomalies, with a gradual decrease distantly. We can gain further insight into how different environmental changes, disruptions, and pollutants lead to this imperfection in the otherwise flawless perfect structure of spider webs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ahmad Bilal
- Institute of Zoology, University of the Punjab, Lahore 54590, Pakistan
| | - Abida Butt
- Institute of Zoology, University of the Punjab, Lahore 54590, Pakistan
| | - Adeel Kazam
- Institute of Zoology, University of the Punjab, Lahore 54590, Pakistan
| | - Shakir Ali
- Department of Zoology, Government College University, Lahore 54000, Pakistan
| | - Isha
- Department of Zoology, Government College University, Lahore 54000, Pakistan
| | - Young-Cheol Chang
- Course of Chemical and Biological Engineering, Muroran Institute of Technology, Hokkaido 050-8585, Japan
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Ren XY, Zheng YL, Liu ZL, Duan GL, Zhu D, Ding LJ. Exploring ecological effects of arsenic and cadmium combined exposure on cropland soil: from multilevel organisms to soil functioning by multi-omics coupled with high-throughput quantitative PCR. JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS 2024; 466:133567. [PMID: 38271874 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2024.133567] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2023] [Revised: 01/12/2024] [Accepted: 01/17/2024] [Indexed: 01/27/2024]
Abstract
Arsenic (As) and cadmium (Cd) pose potential ecological threats to cropland soils; however, few studies have investigated their combined effects on multilevel organisms and soil functioning. Here, we used collembolans and soil microbiota as test organisms to examine their responses to soil As and Cd co-contamination at the gene, individual, and community levels, respectively, and further uncovered ecological relationships between pollutants, multilevel organisms, and soil functioning. At the gene level, collembolan transcriptome revealed that elevated As concentrations stimulated As-detoxifying genes AS3MT and GST, whereas the concurrent Cd restrained GST gene expression. At the individual level, collembolan reproduction was sensitive to pollutants while collembolan survival wasn't. At the community level, significant but inconsistent correlations were observed between the biodiversity of different soil keystone microbial clusters and soil As levels. Moreover, soil functioning related to nutrient (e.g., carbon, nitrogen, phosphorus, and sulfur) cycles was inhibited under As and Cd co-exposure only through the mediation of plant pathogens. Overall, these findings suggested multilevel bioindicators (i.e., AS3MT gene expression in collembolans, collembolan reproduction, and biodiversity of soil keystone microbial clusters) in cropland soils co-contaminated with As and Cd, thus improving the understanding of the ecotoxicological impact of heavy metal co-contamination on soil ecosystems.
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Affiliation(s)
- Xin-Yue Ren
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China; Key Laboratory of Urban Environment and Health, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1799 Jimei Road, Xiamen 361021, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 19A Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Yu-Ling Zheng
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 19A Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Zhe-Lun Liu
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 19A Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Gui-Lan Duan
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 19A Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China
| | - Dong Zhu
- Key Laboratory of Urban Environment and Health, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 1799 Jimei Road, Xiamen 361021, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 19A Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China; Zhejiang Key Laboratory of Urban Environmental Processes and Pollution Control, CAS Haixi Industrial Technology Innovation Center in Beilun, Ningbo 315830, China.
| | - Long-Jun Ding
- State Key Laboratory of Urban and Regional Ecology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing 100085, China; University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, 19A Yuquan Road, Beijing 100049, China.
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