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Seminar SS 2024

To participate please apply for a link to the video conference by sending an email to klivv (at) vetmeduni.ac.at
 

Seminars start at 14:00 CET (2 p.m. CET) sharp (unless otherwise indicated)

Please note below if a talk will be held in person/hybrid or online only.

Students who participate in the seminar (online or in person), can have it approved as an elective subject  (KV 128 804 “Ausgewählte Themen der Wildtierökologie”)

Seminar programme

Fasciolosis is an economically important disease of people and their livestock worldwide, affecting more than 300 million animals (cattle, sheep, water buffalo and goats) and between 2.4 to 17 million people. The causative agents of this disease are the helminth parasites, Fasciola hepatica and Fasciola gigantica, commonly referred to as temperate and tropical liver flukes, respectively, which collectively are found across all inhabited continents, in more than 70 countries. These liver fluke parasites are considered highly successful parasites that have adapted to infect a broad range of mammalian hosts, from ruminants that are typically infected, to a range of wild animals including recent reports of deer, kangaroos, llamas and lemurs. Several of these reports are from captive wildlife, highlighting the potential threat for infection and transmission of liver fluke in captive populations. Recent molecular studies using omics tools (genomic, transcriptomic, proteomic, glycomic sequencing technologies) are beginning to reveal a better understanding of Fasciola spp. parasite biology and the parasite relationships with their hosts that drives their success and adaptability.

Convergent evolution, where independent lineages evolve similar traits when adapting to similar habitats, is a common phenomenon and testament to the repeatability of evolutionary processes. Still, non-convergence is also common. A major question is whether apparently idiosyncratic, lineage-specific evolutionary changes are reflective of chance events inherent to evolutionary processes, or whether they are also influenced by deterministic genetic or ecological factors. I will provide an overview of our studies on convergence across lineages of livebearing fishes (family Poeciliidae) that span 40 million years of evolution and have colonized extreme environments in the form of toxic, hydrogen-sulfide-rich springs. Our results revealed variation in convergence across levels in biological organization, and I will discuss the importance of embracing the complexities of both selective regimes and organismal design when assessing the roles of determinism and contingency in evolution.

Determining how ecosystems respond to the loss and recovery of predators is central to understanding the forces that structure food webs and to guiding conservation, restoration, and rewilding. Wolf (Canis lupus) reintroduction to Yellowstone National Park is often celebrated as an example of how predator recovery can transform an ecosystem via predator-induced changes in the behavior and abundance of other species. However, a large and growing body of evidence indicates that this popular interpretation is more myth than reality. The ecological changes attributed to wolves actually have multiple causes, and some of these changes are substantially weaker than is often claimed. I will review this evidence, highlighting the latest research about how Yellowstone wolves affect the behavior and abundance of their primary prey, elk (Cervus canadensis), and how these effects contribute to a trophic cascade affecting aspen (Populus tremuloides), willow (Salix spp.), and beaver (Castor canadensis). A key lesson from the Yellowstone experience is that the ecological consequences of predator recovery in complex ecosystems are easily misunderstood and mischaracterized without careful, long-term research that is effectively communicated to both scientists and the public.  

Foraging cognition incorporates abilities across both physical and social domains. But how to find food that's not freely available? The extraction and processing of embedded or encased food like arthropods, nuts and eggs involves intensive object manipulation, sometimes even tools, and can be socially learned. Through the study of large-brained, long-lived and social bird species (corvids and parrots) – I investigate real-life foraging problems, ranging from tool use behaviour and prey dropping in various crow species to innovations and culture in urban sulphur-crested cockatoos. Exploring both ecological and social drivers, I use a combination of classic behavioural observations, novel experimental designs and citizen science in my work, which is grounded in the natural history of my study species. I will present past and current research on decision-making processes, cost-mitigation strategies, tool-handling performance and social learning, and focus on how the physical and social environment shapes these distinctive behaviours.

Sleep and sleep–like states are present across the animal kingdom, with studies demonstrating sleep–like states in arthropods, nematodes, and even cnidarians. While there is consensus on the universality of sleep in animals, rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, the sleep stage associated with the most narrative and intense dreaming in humans, has so far not been established in terrestrial invertebrates. Recently, we reported evidence for an REM sleep–like state in jumping spiders: periodic bouts of retinal movements coupled with limb twitching and stereotyped leg curling behaviors during nocturnal resting. That such characteristic REM sleep–like behaviors exist in a highly visual lineage, long–diverged from vertebrates, challenges our understanding of REM sleep. Comparisons across lineages likely hold important answers about the origin, evolution, and function of sleep components emphasizing the need to diversify the field of sleep research. To address this gap, we are collecting data across the spider tree of life to track behavioral markers of possible sleep behaviors. Spiders display robust and distinct behavioral markers of possible sleep states and represent exceptional models to systematically study sleep both in the lab and in the field. In this talk, I will share some of our current work on sleep in spiders and give an overview of future research.

Human actions are affecting wildlife across the globe. This phenomenon includes energy-demanding processes that can limit the capacity of organisms to maximise different aspects of fitness, finally leading to population decline and extinction. Recently, ecologists and evolutionary biologists are making use of molecular markers of health and ageing to mechanistically understand a broad range of eco-evolutionary scenarios. Among these mechanisms, the redox balance is known to be key for cell and organismal viability. Oxidative stress can damage essential pathways such as those driving immune responses, and biomolecules such as DNA, including telomeres, the end cap of the chromosomes. Critically short telomeres induce cell apoptosis and, therefore, telomere shortening is linked to decreases in tissue functionality and organismal ageing. In this seminar, I will show how the use of these health and ageing-related mechanisms can help us to mechanistically understand processes such as phenotypic plasticity evolution, divergence in life-history traits across populations, or species distribution. I will approach to this topic through empirical, modelling, and meta-analytical research, mostly on ectothermic organisms coping with global changes. Overall, this talk aims to encourage mechanistic eco-evolutionary approaches, a knowledge that will improve conservation actions.

Infectious diseases in farmed animals cause an enormous threat to sustainable agriculture, food security and to animal, human and planetary health. Vaccination and selective breeding for disease resistance are two of the main strategies to control infectious diseases in farmed animals. However, relatively little is known how either vaccines or the genetics of individuals affects the transmission of infectious pathogens, and hence pathogen spread or evolution. By combining quantitative genetics with epidemiological theory, we define three key host traits that interactively control infectious disease risk and prevalence in populations, namely susceptibility (the probability of an individual to become infected upon contact with an average infectious individual or material), infectivity (the probability of an infected individual to infect a non-infected individual with average susceptibility), and recoverability (the probability of an infected individual to recover from or survive the infection). To date, understanding how vaccines or host genetics affect these host traits is sparse. In this talk I will present concepts, statistical methods and data requirement and optimal design of transmission experiments to simultaneously estimate vaccine and genetic effects for all three epidemiological host traits, and how this knowledge may help to devise more effective disease control strategies. 

Sleep and sleep–like states are present across the animal kingdom, with studies demonstrating sleep–like states in arthropods, nematodes, and even cnidarians. While there is consensus on the universality of sleep in animals, rapid eye movement (REM) sleep, the sleep stage associated with the most narrative and intense dreaming in humans, has so far not been established in terrestrial invertebrates. Recently, we reported evidence for an REM sleep–like state in jumping spiders: periodic bouts of retinal movements coupled with limb twitching and stereotyped leg curling behaviors during nocturnal resting. That such characteristic REM sleep–like behaviors exist in a highly visual lineage, long–diverged from vertebrates, challenges our understanding of REM sleep. Comparisons across lineages likely hold important answers about the origin, evolution, and function of sleep components emphasizing the need to diversify the field of sleep research. To address this gap, we are collecting data across the spider tree of life to track behavioral markers of possible sleep behaviors. Spiders display robust and distinct behavioral markers of possible sleep states and represent exceptional models to systematically study sleep both in the lab and in the field. In this talk, I will share some of our current work on sleep in spiders and give an overview of future research.

I will present an overview of studies of animal behavior focusing on anurans. After introducing the role of scientific sound libraries in the study of anurans, I will describe some traditional two-speaker playback tests with phonotaxis to reveal preferences relevant for sexual selection and detection.  I will also describe some results of studies of acoustic monitoring of temperate populations in relation to climate change.  Finally, I will describe some progress in the study of the ability to detect substrate vibrations in anurans, particularly the detection of rainfall vibrations and the effect of anthropogenic sources of vibrations.

Recent advancements in genomics technology present a diverse range of opportunities and challenges for conservation practitioners and decision-makers. These vary from well-established techniques commonly employed in life sciences to emerging methods still in development. 
In my presentation, I will explore latest advances in the field of genomics and discuss how they can support wildlife conservation and management. I will also discuss the challenges that this field faces, such as data accessibility, ethical considerations, and the integration of genomics with other conservation disciplines. As case examples, my presentation will focus on genomics of Northern chamois (Rupicapra rupicapra) and wild cat (Felix silvestris) as well as on diet analysis of wild boar (Sus scrofa), grey wolf (Canis lupus) and Eurasian lynx (Lynx lynx). Moreover, considering differences in their population densities, spatial behaviour, dietary characteristics, and life-history strategies, we tried to assess the effects of habitat fragmentation and hybridisation on populations genetic structure and dietary profile determined by metabarcoding. We used genomics information to gain better insight into the influence of external and intrinsic factors on population dynamics and structure of these species, which would allow us to conduct sustainable, science-based population management.

One of the big puzzles of evolution is the question how group level cooperation could evolve. One hypothesis is that strong between group competition has driven group level cooperation within a group. Here I am summarizing several studies, testing several predictions related to this hypothesis in wild chimpanzees (Pan troglodytes), a territorial species with hostile out-group encounters and the capacity of in-group cooperation. Behavioural observations over more than 25 years on four communities of chimpanzees located in the Taï National Park, Côte d’Ivoire. I will be looking into fitness consequences due to out-group competition, effects of out-group competition on in-group cooperation and the level of in-group cooperation.  

TBA

Electrical impedance tomography (EIT) is a non-invasive imaging technique gaining traction in veterinary medicine for its potential to monitor physiological processes in animals – in particular monitoring of ventilation. This lecture will aim to elucidate the principles and applications of EIT in the context of wild life immobilisation. EIT involves the injection of low-frequency electrical currents through electrodes placed on the body surface and measuring resulting voltage differentials. By analyzing changes in impedance, EIT generates cross-sectional images of lung ventilation and perfusion.
In veterinary medicine, EIT holds promise for real-time monitoring of lung function and cardiac activity. Its non-invasive nature makes it particularly attractive for continuous monitoring in unintubated immobilised animals (or awake when approachable). EIT has been successfully utilised in various animal models, including pigs, sheep, rhinos, sea lions and dolphins, to assess lung ventilation, detect pulmonary edema, and bronchoconstriction.
However, challenges such as electrode placement variability and limited spatial resolution remain, necessitating further refinement for widespread clinical adoption. Despite these hurdles, EIT shows significant potential as a cost-effective, radiation-free imaging modality for routine monitoring and diagnostic purposes in the field. Continued research and technological advancements hold the key to unlocking the full capabilities of EIT in improving lung ventilation and perfusion monitoring.