The introduction of new hosts into new habitats can bring along hitchhiking parasites, i.e. parasites being introduced with the host. This in particular can be an important dispersal mechanism for autogenic parasites that are otherwise restricted by the natural movement of their fish hosts. In this study, the effect of a local host introduction on the parasite communities of three-spined sticklebacks ...

Three mechanisms have been implicated for plant microRNAs (miRNAs) to regulate gene expression, i.e. directing target RNA cleavage, transcriptional silencing and translational repression. A great number of target genes of plant miRNAs were predicted using different algorithms and verified through experimental methods. In the present work, one miRNA from Arabidopsis, microRNA 840 (miR840) was ...

The spring season is important to polar bears, since females with young cubs leave the maternity dens, ringed seal pupping creates a peak in prey availability, and it is the mating season. Understanding space- and resource use at this time is a key to understanding polar bear ecology. This study from Svalbard, Norway analyzed 348 measurements of spring-to-spring displacement from 220 polar bears ...

Currently there is a lack of spring phenology studies covering small-scale altitudinal gradients of mountain birch in coastal northern Fennoscandia, a region characterized by exceptionally high precipitation of snow, which gives reason to investigate the influence of snow cover on birch budburst in this area. Furthermore, ground phenology studies are today increasingly replaced by satellite data ...

The fatty acid (FA) composition of 37 minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) from 4 different areas, Spitsbergen, Bjørnøya, Vesterålen and the North Sea was determined. Stratification between inner, middle and outer blubber was present. Most saturated fatty acids (SFAs) and monounsaturated fatty acids (MUFAs) with 20 and 22 carbon atoms had a higher relative amount in the inner blubber while ...

The hooded seal is a deep diving phocid seal in the North Atlantic Ocean, possessing the highest oxygen storing capacity and the shortest lactation period of any mammal hitherto reported. Pups are not born expert divers and have to develop relevant physiological adaptations quickly in order to forage independently. To investigate the early development of myoglobin (Mb), a key molecule for diving ...

Studies of gallinaceous bird species stress the importance of high nest losses as a factor influencing life histories and populations. Accordingly knowledge of the mechanisms affecting nest losses is essential for understanding the population dynamics. The aim of this one year study was to estimate predation rates on artificial ground nests in ptarmigan habitats, along a landscape gradient which ...

Sommeren 2009 fisket vi med kilenøter innerst i Malangen. Den eldste laksen ble fanget først. For den eldste gruppen (tresjøvinterlaks) kom også hunnene inn før hannene. Vi radiomerket 111 laks, og 82 % av disse ble senere registrert i Målselva. Av de øvrige merkede laksene ble det registrert gjenfangster både i sjø og elv, helt fra Vefsna i sør til Tana i nord. De radiomerkede laksene vandret ...

Satellite telemetry records of temperature, activity and position data for female polar bears (Ursus maritimus) known to have been (n=11) and to not have been (n=15) in maternity dens during winter were analyzed during the period from December 15th to March 1st for patterns that could be used to demonstrate denning in other female bears by means of telemetry collars. Temperature was found to be the ...

The riparian Coleoptera fauna of the river Altaelva, Finmark County, Northern Norway, has been surveyed in summer 2002 and 2003. The river Altaelva has been regulated since 1987, and my objective was to investigate the effect of the regulation on the riparian fauna. In total, 37 localities were examined, and four methods were used: hand collecting, washing without area limitation, quadrate sampling ...