Charismatic mammals remain a linchpin in attracting publicity and funds for the conservation of native habitats and organisms. Unfortunately, the same animals are frequently scarce and difficult to survey. For many, confirming their presence through faecal surveys is the only cost-effective approach. Here we show that, contrary to received opinion, expert naturalists fail reliably to distinguish pine marten Martes martes faeces (‘scats’) from those of foxes Vulpes vulpes. Moreover, their judgement fails completely when the animals and their scats are at their most scarce. This unexpected result from such a well-studied species has important implications for the monitoring of endangered mammals. We recommend that in the future, a multi-evidence approach should be adopted to monitor elusive mammals, involving DNA methods, cast hair identification, camera traps, and non-leading ‘sighting’ questionaires. For national surveys, it may soon become cost-effective to screen large numbers of samples using microarray technology.

Crocidura tadae was first reported as a new species from Orchid Island by Tokuda & Kano (1936). However, both C. tadae and C. kurodai from Taiwan were considered as subspecies of C. horsfieldii by subsequent researchers. In the present study, the karyotypic and morphological differences among the potential C. tadae specimens from Taiwan main island and two offshore islands (Orchid Island and Green Island) were examined. The results revealed that there is no significant difference in the karyotypes of these shrews but that their karyotype is different from that of other Crocidura species. Therefore, the Tadae's shrew C. tadae Tokuda & Kano, 1936 should be a valid species. Furthermore, morphological variation in 25 external and cranial characters of 106 specimens were analysed using univariate statistics, and eight selected characters were used for multivariate analyses. Univariate statistical comparisons of the three insular samples revealed that shrews of the Green Island population were the largest in most measurements of characters and shrews of the Orchid Island population were the smallest. Multivariate analysis differentiated the Taiwan samples from the other two insular samples. Therefore, three subspecies of C. tadae are recognized: C. t. tadae (Orchid Island); C. t. kurodai (Taiwan) and C. t. lutaoensis subsp. nov (Green Island).

Environmental variables shaped the morphology of tadpoles of the common frog, Rana temporaria, in various ways at the Pyrenean locality Circo de Piedrafita. Examining only specimens in similar developmental stages, those from small ponds (with higher temperature and higher tadpole density) had lower growth rates, lower relative tail height, lower relative body width and fewer labial keratodonts and keratodont rows. The variation in keratodonts may have been caused by heterochrony related to the slower growth rate. The number of lingual papillae also differed between ponds but was not related to pond size. Higher predator densities caused a higher percentage of damaged tails and a lower relative tail length in specimens with apparently intact tails, probably as a result of incomplete regeneration after mutilations earlier in development.

For Gryllus bimaculatus (Orthoptera: Gryllidae), a comparison was made of the prediction from species recognition theory that stabilizing selection acts on mate recognition traits and that of sexual selection that predicts diversifying selection on mate recognition traits. The calling songs and morphometrics of four populations of field crickets from South Africa were compared. Song characteristics generally showed less between-population variation than did morphometric variation. This applied in particular to the song characteristics known to be important in species recognition. Within-population variation of species recognition traits were significantly smaller than for other call traits as well as morphometric traits. This is consistent with the expectation that stabilizing selection occurs for species recognition traits within populations as well as throughout their geographical ranges. No song traits correlated significantly with body size. Our study suggests that the calling song traits involved in mate recognition lack the variation required for sexual selection to operate. However, the amount of variation inherent in some of the other song parameters of field crickets still has the potential to give rise to sexual selection based on traits other than body size.

The remarkable diversity in chromosome number within Planipapillus Reid 1996, the most speciose genus of peripatopsid onychophorans, centred in the alpine region of south-eastern Australia is documented. Robertsonian, whole-arm rearrangements account for the twofold range of diploid numbers in Planipapillus. Ooperipatellus Ruhberg 1985, another clade of oviparous onychophorans, shows a very different pattern, with no karyotypic diversity among species from Australia and New Zealand. Rate constancy in chromosomal evolution among peripatopsid genera would indicate an ancient radiation in Planipapillus, with extant species representing relictual survivors of more recent Pleistocene climatic upheavals. Conversely, if the rearrangements in Planipapillus are the result of recent and rapid karyotypic restructuring, the karyotypic and species diversity within the genus may be attributed to recent population fragmentation and isolation resulting from the repeated glaciation and warming cycles of the Pleistocene rather than stemming from a more ancient radiation. Data from other animal groups support a model of accelerated rates of Robertsonian centric fusions concordant with a recent radiation in Planipapillus. Karyotype change may be an important factor in the generation and maintenance of Planipapillus diversity.

This study represents the first systematic investigation of long-term anhydrobiotic survival in tardigrades, rotifers and nematodes inhabiting mosses and lichens. Sixty-three different samples from public and private collections, kept dry for 9–138 years, were examined. Rotifers of the genus Mniobia and the eutardigrade Ramazzottius oberhaeuseri (hatched from eggs) were found alive from one of the samples (9 years old). These observations represent the longest record for rotifers in the anhydrobiotic state. For tardigrades, our results confirm previous reports on the upper limit of anhydrobiotic survival under atmospheric oxygen conditions. This study suggests the possibility that tardigrade eggs are able to withstand longer periods in anhydrobiosis than animals. Some problems related to the evaluation of long-term anhydrobiotic survival, such as contamination and chemical treatments of samples, are reported. The possible role of the microenvironment in which the anhydrobiotic animals are kept is discussed.

The alarm vocalizations of the whistling rats Parotomys brantsii and P. littledalei were investigated at the Goegap Nature Reserve in the Northern Cape, South Africa, where they occur sympatrically. Parotomys brantsii's call is a single note vocalization, characterized by an upward frequency sweep and high frequency plateau with a dominant frequency of 10.0 ± 0.3 kHz and duration of 164 ± 11 ms. The alarm whistle of P. littledalei has three overlapping components and is both shorter (53 ± 5 ms) and lower in dominant frequency (7.7 ± 0.1 kHz) than that of P. brantsii. The frequency bandwidth of P. littledalei calls (10.2 ± 0.7 kHz) is significantly higher than that of P. brantsii (6.8 ± 0.4 kHz). These significant distinctions are attributed to habitat preferences of the two species. Our data support the acoustic adaptation hypothesis in that P. littledalei, which inhabits a more closed habitat, has calls which are lower in frequency than P. brantsii calls, but contrary to the hypothesis, P. brantsii calls do not show greater frequency modulation than those of P. littledalei. Despite these differences, the alarm calls of the two species are both high-pitched, and may have converged in structure to be difficult for predators to locate.

The diet of striped possums Dactylopsila trivirgata inhabiting the tropical forests of far north Queensland, Australia, was investigated by observing foraging behaviour and analysing stomach samples collected opportunistically from dead animals. In contrast to non-dactylopsiline petaurids, which frequently use plant exudates as well as invertebrates, observations on the foraging behaviour of D. trivirgata indicate that it is an opportunistic forager feeding mainly on invertebrates. Animals occasionally fed on plant exudates but these contributed little to the diet. Nine different orders of invertebrates were present in stomach samples, with wood boring coleopteran and lepidopteran larvae, and adult hymenopterans and isopterans being most frequently represented in the diet. This is consistent with the unusual morphological characteristics of D. trivirgata's, such as their elongated fourth finger and powerful jaws, which appear to be adaptations for extracting prey such as wood-boring larvae. Two of the important prey taxa in the diet (alates of Formicidae, and larvae of Cerambycidae) had a very high fat content (44% and 40% of dry weight, respectively) suggesting that the animals may target prey of high nutritional value. Anatomical investigations indicated that, relative to body weight, the digestive tract of D. trivirgata was shorter than that of most other petaurids. These data further support the idea that D. trivirgata is more reliant on invertebrates than other members of the family Petauridae.

Physical characteristics of roost sites used by the lesser long-eared bat Nyctophilus geoffroyi and Gould's wattled bat Chalinolobus gouldii were investigated in a farmland–remnant vegetation mosaic and adjacent forested floodplain in south-eastern Australia. A total of 45 individuals of N. geoffroyi and 27 C. gouldii were fitted with radio-transmitters, resulting in the location of 139 and 89 roosts, respectively. Male N. geoffroyi roosted in trees, fallen and decayed timber and artificial structures. These roosts were low to the ground, mainly under bark and in cracks in timber. Roosts of female N. geoffroyi were located higher above ground, and all within trees. Maternity roosts were predominantly located in large dead trees, approximately twice the diameter of roost trees used by females outside the breeding season. No maternity roosts were found under bark, despite half the roosts used by non-breeding females being located in these situations. Both sexes roosted primarily in dead timber and used cavities where the narrowest dimension of the entrance was 2.5 cm. Most roosts of C. gouldii were in dead spouts on large, live river red gum Eucalyptus camaldulensis trees. Intraspecific differences in roost characteristics were less pronounced for this species. Despite access to the same roosting opportunities, there were marked differences in roost selection between N. geoffroyi and C. gouldii. Both species favoured large diameter trees, but differed significantly for all other measured variables: type of roost structure, condition of roost tree (live or dead), height of roost tree, height of roost, and entrance dimensions. Although these species are among the most widespread bats in Australia and are often considered to be habitat ‘generalists’, both displayed a high level of discrimination in the roosts used. Clearly, roosting requirements are a complex and important issue in the conservation of even the most common species of bats.

The extant lungfish, including three genera, the Australian, South American and African lungfishes, retain a dentition that appeared first in the Devonian, in some of the oldest members of this group. The dentition consists of permanent tooth plates with persistent cusps that appear early in development of the fish. The cusps, separate early in development, form ridges that are arranged in a radiating pattern, and fusion of the cusps to each other and to the underlying jaw bone produces a tooth plate. The lungfish dentition is based on a template of mantle dentine that surrounds bone trabeculae enclosed in the tooth plate. The mantle layer is covered by enamel. In most derived dipnoans, this framework encloses two further forms of dentine, known as interdenteonal and circumdenteonal dentines. The tooth plates grow in area and in depth without evidence of macroscopic resorption of dentines or of enamel. Increase in size and changes in shape of lungfish tooth plates is actually achieved by a process involving microscopic remodelling of the bone contained within the margin of each tooth plate, and the later addition of new dentines and enamel within and around the bone. This is accomplished without creating weakness in the structural integrity of the tooth plate and bone complex, and proceeds in line with growth and remodelling of the jaw bones attached to the tooth plates.

The northern quoll Dasyurus hallucatus is a sexually dimorphic carnivorous marsupial found in northern Australia. Despite males weighing up to 1120 g, in at least some populations all males die after mating. Radio-tracking and live-trapping at a lowland savanna site in Kakadu National Park indicated that females occupied home ranges averaging 35 ha with intra-sexually exclusive denning areas. There was some overlap of foraging ranges when the density was 3–4 females/km2, but no overlap during periods of lower population density (1–2 females/km2). Male home-range size may be similar to females before the mating season, but expands during the mating season to > 100 ha to overlap extensively with several female ranges and numerous other male ranges. Despite this range overlap, both sexes were solitary. Even during the mating period, males denned on average 0.27 km from females during the day. During the mating period, each female was visited by at least one to four males per night. During this period, the increase in scat deposition in prominent positions in the landscape and the simultaneous increase in sternal gland activity of the males suggest the importance of olfactory communication to advertise the presence and sexual status of individuals. Males adopted a roving strategy, regularly visiting several widely spaced females in rapid succession, presumably to monitor the onset of oestrus. This intense physical effort during the mating period is likely to be a major contributor to the physiological decline of the males and subsequent die-off after the mating period. The marked sexual dimorphism of D. hallucatus may be the result of selection for larger, wider-ranging males in a promiscuous mating system and for energetically efficient smaller females, as females rear the young alone.

The majority (98%) of the 174 female elephants in South Africa's Addo Elephant National Park are tuskless. Long-term records are used to assess trends in tusklessness in this elephant population throughout the 20th century. These data are then used to test hypotheses of possible causes of this tusklessness. It is shown that attributes of the region's vegetation (structure and/or nutrient composition) and selective hunting cannot provide adequate explanations for the high frequency of tusklessness among the Addo elephants. Non-selective genetic changes resulting from the population's isolation, small size and bottlenecks (during the 1800s and 1920s) are suggested to be primarily responsible for the observed tusklessness. The rapid increase in the frequency of tusklessness during the past 70 years provides a phenotypic indicator of underlying genetic drift.

Sexual dimorphism in the primate face has been studied intensively lately, but a number of issues remain controversial. For example, some studies have indicated that facial sexual dimorphism arises through ontogenetic scaling, whereas others have found it to be a consequence of both ontogenetic scaling and divergence in male and female growth trajectories. To shed further light on primate facial sexual dimorphism, geometric morphometric methods were applied to crania representing five papionin genera: Cercocebus, Lophocebus, Macaca, Mandrillus and Papio. A first set of analyses focused on the pattern and degree of facial sexual dimorphism exhibited by adult specimens. A second set of analyses concentrated on the ontogeny of facial sexual dimorphism in infant-to-adult age series. The first set indicated that the five genera exhibit significant facial sexual dimorphism. These analyses also revealed that the genera share several features of sexual dimorphism. Males are distinguished from females in having a more prognathic mid-face, a relatively more inferiorly and anteriorly positioned prosthion, relatively increased subnasal height and relatively broader zygomatic roots. They are also differentiated from females in their maxillae, which relative to the zygomatics are narrow but vertically deep, especially in the posterior aspect. Also, the first set of analyses indicated that Macaca is the most distinctive of the genera in terms of sexual dimorphism. The distinctive features of the Macaca sexual dimorphism are that males exhibit relatively wider nasal apertures and premaxillae than females, together with a relative increase in breadth across the inferior zygomatic roots. The second set of analyses demonstrated that in all the genera, sexual dimorphism arises partly through ontogenetic scaling and partly through a late divergence in male and female growth trajectories. The analyses also indicated that the relative contribution of these processes to sexual dimorphism varies among the genera. Ontogenetic scaling is by far the most important process in Lophocebus and Papio. Late divergence between male and female growth trajectories contributes proportionately more in Cercocebus and Mandrillus, although ontogenetic scaling still plays the major role. The relative contribution of late divergence between male and female growth trajectories is greatest in Macaca, in which it accounts for about half of the facial differences between adult males and females. In all five genera, ontogenetic scaling results in increased prognathism and greater relative maxillary size in males compared to females, whilst the late divergence involves the male mid-face becoming proportionately larger and deeper than the female mid-face, and the male posterior maxilla coming to lie more inferiorly with respect to the zygomatic root than its female counterpart.

This study examined how spatial variation in flow regime affects patterns of tadpole distribution in Birthday Creek, an upland rainforest stream in northern Queensland. Tadpoles of Litoria genimaculata and Mixophyes schevilli are restricted to habitats with little or no water flow, and L. nannotis and Nyctimystes dayi occur only in rapidly flowing and turbulent riffle habitats. The abilities of L. genimaculata, M. schevilli and L. nannotis to resist flow rates typical of riffle habitats were compared in a laboratory flow chamber and in an artificial riffle in the field. In the flow chamber, large tadpoles of L. genimaculata were more resistant to flow rates of 25 cm/s than were smaller individuals, but at 50 cm/s all tadpoles were dislodged irrespective of size. Large M. schevilli tadpoles were significantly more resistant than were smaller individuals only at the fastest flow rate. Large (> 25 mm body length) M. schevilli were resistant to the highest tested flow rates (50 cm/s), but in an artificial riffle with turbulence typical of a riffle both Litoria genimaculata and Mixophyes schevilli were rapidly dislodged irrespective of their size. Fast water speeds had little impact on L. nannotis in the flow chamber or in the artificial riffle. Litoria nannotis and other tadpoles living in riffles have evolved a range of morphological and behavioural traits that minimize exposure to, and maximize resistance to, fast-flowing turbulent water within these habitats. The results of this study indicate that L. genimaculata and M. schevilli cannot live in riffles because they are unable to withstand the flow rates typical of these habitats.