Abstract:We made an observtion on the breeding behabavior on two groups (1♂3♀ and 2♂3♀) of Asiatic Wild Ass from June 2014 to August 2015 at Inner Mongolia Chaganhada Su'mu, Da'erhan Maoming'an Lianheqi Tenggenaoer District (Baotou City) (41°14′﹣42°40′N，109°16′﹣110°26′E) and the National Nature Reserve for Asiatic Wild Ass (Bayannur City) (41°50′﹣42°27′N，106°15′﹣108°00′E) (Fig. 1, Point A and Point C). We recorded the estrus and mating behavior, prenatal reaction, parturition process and postpartum behavioral expression. Our observation revealed that each male mounted female 4.2 ± 1.7 (n = 14) times and ejaculated 3.7 ± 1.3 (n = 13) times each day averagely. The average sexual solicitation duration (begin from flirting to mounting or one goes away) was 26.6 ± 22.0 s (n = 13), the twitching duration was 10.6 ± 1.9 s (n = 14), and the penis implantation duration was 18.3 ± 8.8 s (n = 13). The mounting interval was 685.7 ± 569.6 s (n = 14), and the ejaculate interval was 924.0 ± 790.0 s (n = 10). The copulatory pattern of Assiatic Ass was with no lock, thrusting, single intromission, multiple ejaculation, and no long time intromission, which belonged to type 11 in Dewsbury's copulatory-patterned system and type 12 in Dixon's copulatory-patterned system. We established the breeding behavior spectrum for the wild and provided some basic data on the breeding behavior based on our observation.

Abstract:The increase of tourism has taken an amount of people and vehicles in the recent decade to the Nature Reserves in which wildlife inhabit. The unreasonable behaviors of tourists and vehicle noise have produced an displeasure pressure on the survival and reproduction of some endangered species. Understanding the way of tourism impacts on wildlife is a basis for the nature reserve managers to make a reasonable conservation strategies for the wildlife species under the tourist pressure. Unfortunately, few field studies related to this problem has been conducted in the nature reserve. In this paper we evaluated the reaction of Giant Panda (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) to the tourists by comparing the mean and minimum distance from the signs of Giant Panda presence to hiking trails and vehicle roads located in the year 2000 before the tourism development with those found in the year 2012 when the tourists were crowd in the summer at the Tangjiahe National Nature Reserve. The Giant Panda showed significant avoidance from both trails and roads (P = 0.024, Table 1). The first least avoiding distance threshold was 0﹣57 m and 0﹣460 m for hiking trails and roads, the second threshold was 57﹣800 m and 460﹣1 000 m, and the third one was 800﹣1 400 m and ＞1 000 m respectively. By the Mann-Whitney U test, we found that the mean signs of Giant Pandas in every 100 m across the distance to the haiking trails and driving roads showed a significant difference (1.9 ± 0.23 vs. 0.8 ± 0.15, Z =﹣3.48, P = 0.000) between the year 2000 and 2012. Meanwhile, the distance from the location of Giant Panda presence to the hiking trails and roads in every 100 m altitude range varied significantly (t = 3.76, P = 0.003, Table 2). The minimum avoiding distance occurred at altitude 2 000﹣2 100 m for the driving roads, while this distance for the hiking trails were at the altitude 2 100﹣2 200 m. Our data revealed the minimum safe distance which produce minimum influence on the Giant Panda by the tourists. Our approach that evaluated the influence of tourism for the Giant Panda can be used in the other nature reserves when they consider to accept the tourists.

Abstract:The Plateau Zokor (Eospalax baileyi) is one of the dominant rat species of the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and it has an important role in alpine grassland ecosystems. In this study, the zokors were captured by setting the 6 samples each year in the study area (Table 1); bodyweight, pregnancy rate and population density of Plateau Zokor ere chosen as the index of population features; normalized difference vegetation ondex (NDVI), the annual average precipitation and temperature from 2008 to 2014 (Table 2) were chosen as the environmental factors. The paper analyzed the relationship between population features of Plateau Zokor and environmental factors in order to clear influence of environmental factors on the population features of Plateau Zokor. The results showed that there was no significant difference on inter-annual NDVI (P > 0.05, Fig. 1) and bodyweight, pregnancy rate, population density year to year from 2008 to 2014 (P > 0.05, Table 3). With the development of time, the bodyweight of male and female, population density and pregnancy rate had not correlation with the environmental factors such as average annual precipitation and average annual temperature (P > 0.05, Fig. 2﹣7). The above results show that there were no correlation between bodyweight, population density and pregnancy rate of Plateau Zokor and environmental factors, which means the environmental factors had little influence on zokors′ population features.

Abstract:We observed the behavior of two pairs of Upland Buzzard (Buteo hemilasius) which reproduced in artificial nests (Fig. 1) by using the focal sampling method during April to September, 2015 in Qilian County, Qinghai Province. The study area is located in Qilian Mts (37o56′﹣37°59′ N, 100°12′﹣100°15′ E) with the altitude of 3 650 m. Binoculars and video cameras were used to observe and record the behavior of the buzzards from 8:00﹣18:00, and we made observation on the 2 nests by turn for every two days. Observations were carried out at a distance about 50 m from the nests for 119 days (882 h valid); and video cameras, covered by branches, were set beside each nest to record constantly for 100 days (1 063 h valid). The breeding season lasted 112.0 ± 2.0 d (n = 2) from April to August, and it was divided into pre-incubation period, incubation period (43.3 ± 2.0 d), parental-care period (49.4 ± 4.3 d) and nestling-mature period (16.2 ± 4.9 d) (Table 1). We defined the behavior of the Upland Buzzard by the postures and actions, and classified thirty behaviors grouped under 12 categories for parents and 25 behaviors grouped under 9 categories for nestlings according to motivations and functions. We analyzed the behavior time budget and tested the differences of time budget spent in major categories by male and female between different periods by the One-way ANOVA test. We found that: (1) there was no significant difference between the time budget of male and female during pre-incubation or incubation period while there were significant differences during parental-care and nestling-mature period. The females spent more time in resting (P < 0.01) and less time in predating (P < 0.01) than the males during the two periods. (2) The general time budget of females was significantly different between different periods (P < 0.05); and the general time budget of males was not significantly different between parental-care and nestling-mature period (P > 0.05), however, it was between other periods (P < 0.05) (Table 2). (3) Time budget of nestlings was significantly different between parental-care and nestling-mature period (P < 0.05) (Table 3).

Abstract:From November 2014 to April 2015, 30 infrared-triggered automatic cameras were deployed in Beijing Wulingshan Nature Reserve in order to collect the latest data of wild birds and mammals. During the period, 27 species of birds, belonging to 14 families and 5 orders, and 10 species of mammals, belonging to 8 families and 4 orders, were detected, which included 4 second class of state key protected species, Koklass Pheasant (Pucrasia macrolopha), Oriental Scops Owl (Otus sunia), Little Owl (Athene noctua) and Chinese Goral (Naemorhedus griseus) (Table 1 and Table 2). The Kolmogorov-Smirnov test indicated the distribution of bird species was normal (Z = 1.534, P = 0.02) whereas the mammal species was not (Z = 0.864, P = 0.44). The number of bird species varied strongly among months. The 6 species that owned the highest relative abundance indexes (RAI) were Roe Deer (Capreolus pygargus, RAI = 60.19), Red-billed Blue Magpie (Urocissa erythrorhyncha, RAI = 34.14), Spotted Nutcracker (Nucifraga caryocatactes, RAI = 27.78), David′s Rock Squirrel (Sciurotamias davidianus, RAI = 23.34), Eurasian Jay (Garrulus glandarius, RAI = 23.34) and Chinese Goral (RAI = 21.99) (Table 1 and Table 2), of which the mammals were selected to conduct daily activity pattern analyses. The results revealed that the daily rhythm of Roe Deer presented a dimodal pattern with peaks at 8:00﹣10:00 and 16:00﹣18:00 (Fig. 1a), while Chinese Goral had active peaks at 2:00﹣4:00 and 20:00﹣22:00 (Fig. 1b). David′s Rock Squirrel was most active at 8:00﹣10:00 in the morning (Fig. 1c). This study provided the latest information about species diversity and activity rhythm of birds and mammals in Beijing Wulingshan Nature Reserve. It′s advisable to use camera trapping to photograph epigeous bird, large- and medium-sized mammals and nocturnal species, however, inappropriate for little rodents or birds resided in trees. This study offered the valuable practical experience in application of camera trapping in wildlife diversity monitoring in mountain forest.

Abstract:Taishan Mountain in central Shandong Province is the highest mountain over the centre and east part of North China, with various kinds of habitat and terrain, it is an important ecological region for the breeding and stopover of birds. We compared the variety of breeding bird species for nearly 30 years based on the results of field surveys and interviews in 1984﹣1988 and in 2013﹣2015 (line transects of the field survey are listed in Table 1). Compared with breeding bird species in the 1980s (13 orders, 35 families, 72 species), we recorded 84 species belonged to 34 families, 11 orders in the 2010s (Appendix 1), with 32 species new and 20 species disappeared. New recorded species are mainly forest and shrub birds, and most of them are oriental species; The disappeared species mainly lived in wetlands, farmlands and grasslands, and most of them are palaearctic and cosmopolitan species. Reasons for the addition and disappearance of breeding bird species are multiple, but the main reason is the changes of area and quality of habitats, and privately buy-and-release animals is another important reason. Our results could enrich the background data of bird community changes, and provide scientific support for bird protection in Taishan Mountain area.

Abstract:Bird bite force could be an indication of evolutionary adaptation in avian head and beak morphology, and thus an important indicator of ecological adaptation characteristic such as food type, intraspecific competition and predation pressure. However, there has been little work on bird bite force and its influencing factors. In this study, we compared bite forces of two sister sparrow species from the Passeridae family, the Tree Sparrow (Passer montanus) and Russet Sparrow (P. cinnamomeus), by using a bite force transducer. The results showed that bite force of Russet Sparrow (n = 12) was significantly stronger than that of Tree Sparrow (n = 59) (Fig. 1, t = 3.754, P < 0.01), however, there was no difference in sex of Russet Sparrow (t = 0.449, P > 0.05) or Tree Sparrow (Z =﹣1.198, P > 0.05) (Fig. 2).The head width (t =﹣3.713, P < 0.01), head depth (t =﹣5.405, P < 0.01) and beak width (t =﹣6.201, P < 0.01) of the Russet Sparrow were also much bigger than those of the Tree Sparrow (Table 1). Although our results showed that the bite force was not related to any body parameter in individuals of the two sparrow species (Table 2), it was indicated that head size and bill width might be related to the bite force in interspecific species competition. The difference in bite force of these two sparrow species may be due to their different habitats and food types. To the best of our knowledge, our work is the first quantitative study of bird bite force in China.

Abstract:Over the past decades, the snakes of the genus Gloydius with 23 rows mid-back scales (except for Gloydius saxatilis, G. shedaoensis and G. lijianlii) have been identified as G. intermedius by most Chinese herpetologists consistently. However, different populations of so called “G. intermedius” in the north of China exhibit highly variable in morphological characters and behavioral traits (Fig. 2, Fig. 3 and Fig. 4). Therefore, it is necessary to investigate the systematic relationships between different populations of “G. intermedius”. In this study, we conducted a comparative study on different populations of “G. intermedius” in the north of China (Table 1 and Table 2) by combining several approaches such as field exploration (Fig. 1), morphological comparison and molecular phylogenetics. The results indicated that there are significant morphological difference between different populations of “G. intermedius” from the north of China (Table 3), which indeed belongs to three subspecies of G. halys, i.e. G. h. halys, G. h. cognatus and G. h. stejnegeri, respectively (morphological comparison in Table 4 and type locality comparison in Table 5). The mean genetic divergence (uncorrected p-distance) among these three subspecies of G. halys is higher than those among the recognized congeneric species, suggesting that G. h. cognatus and G. h. stejnegeri should be elevated as species status (Fig. 5 and Fig. 6). Accordingly, “G. intermedius” from the north of China should be regarded as three distinct species, i.e. “Siberian Pitviper (G. h. halys)”, “North China Pitviper” (G. stejnegeri) and “Alashan Pitviper” (G. cognatus), respectively. The haplotype network also suggested that G. h. caraganus should be elevated as species status (G. caraganus, Fig. 6). In addition, this study reveals that G. shedaoensis, which was considered as an insular endemic species, also occur in Liaodong Peninsular Mountains, thus we suggest to recover the validity of G. sh. qianshanensis Li, 1999. Finally, we provided a thorough review and supplement of the taxonomy, distribution and biology of the Gloydius halys-G. intermedius complex in China.

Abstract:In order to study the stability of winner-loser effect of dominant and subordinate crayfish Procambarus clakii, and discuss the agonistic strategy when they face new opponent in the same size, we first put two individual of crayfish marked with different colors together for 3 days and recorded the winner and loser for each pair. We separated the pair for 3 h, then provided a new crayfish for both of them to made two new pairs for 30 min and taped the fighting results for both winners and losers. Among the 40 winners, 23 individuals won the fight with the new crayfish at first time they encountered and the rest was loser. There was no any difference between percent of winner and loser for the dominant crayfish; for the subordinate group, 18 out of 40 won the first fight, no difference between the percent of winner and loser (α ≤ 0.05, Table 1). The level of significance under which the null hypothesis was rejected is α 0.05. We found that (Table 1): 23/40 the origin social status of the crayfish cannot be recognized by the stranger. In the second fight, 18 out of 23 crayfish who won the first game were the winner in the dominant group, the individuals won twice was significant more than that won the first game and lose the second fight. While in the subordinate group, only 11/18 of them won again. In contrast, 13 out of 17 losers for the dominant group and 17 out of 22 losers for the subordinate for the subordinate group lose again in the second fight. No matter crayfish whether dominant nor the subordinate, the number of crayfish who lose twice were significant more than that lose in the first encounter and won the second. That suggested the winner effect was stable for dominant crayfish, while the loser effect is stable for subordinate one. However winner effect is not stable in subordinate crayfish. In addition, we used t-test to analyze the times of fighting, duration of fighting, and dominant index (Table 2﹣5) and found out that the agonistic strategy between the dominant crayfish (no mater they were winner or loser) and subordinate ones was difference that would cause different result of the fight.

Abstract:The Norway Rat (Rattus norvegicus) is one of the main pest rodents in Hainan Island, where there is an important port in South China. However, its genetic diversity and gene flows between rat populations in Hainan Island and neighbor regions are not clear. In this study, we sequenced the cytochrome b (Cyt b) gene for 91 Norway Rats from Hainan Island, Guangdong Province, Vietnam, Philippine etc., then analyzed the Cyt b haplotypes and the level of population differentiation (Fst), and constructed the phylogenetic relationship among 60 Cyt b haplotypes from the Norway Rats all over the world. Results show that the rat populations from Yacheng and Qiongzhong/Chengmai in Hainan Island share no haplotype (Table 1), furthermore, the two populations are significantly differentiated (Fst = 0.453, Table 2). However, the two Hainan populations shared haplotypes with the rat populations in Guangdong Province and Philippines/Vietnam, respectively (Table 1), indicating possible gene flows between populations in Yacheng and Philippines/Vietname, and between populations in Qiongzhong/Chengmai and Guangdong Province. Phylogenetic analysis reveals that most Cyt b haplotypes in Hainan Island and Guangdong Province cluster into two haplotype groups CⅢ and CⅦ (Fig. 2, 3), indicating that the rat populations in Hainan Island and Guangdong Province may spread from one or more common ancestral populations, which likely spread from coastal region of Guangdong and Guangxi provinces and arrived in Hainan Island with Li people in the middle Neolithic (about 3 000 years ago) or before that time.

Abstract:The aim of the present study was to examine the effects of hypothalamic neuropeptide genes expression on body mass regulation under seasonal variations in Chevrier′s Field Mouse (Apodemus chevrieri). Body mass, body fat mass, food intake, serum leptin levels and hypothalamic neuropeptide neuropeptide Y (NPY), agouti-related peptide (AgRP), pro-opiomelanocortin (POMC) and cocaine and amphetamine regulated transcript peptide (CART) expression were measured in Chevrier′s Field Mouse. Food intake was measured by food equity, body fat was extracted from the dried carcass by ether extraction in a Soxhlet apparatus, hypothalamic neuropeptides genes expression was measured by real-time q-PCR. Data were analyzed using One-way ANOVA or One-way ACNOVA, and associations were judged by Pearson-correlation analysis. The results showed that body mass and body fat mass showed seasonal variations, higher in summer and lower in winter (Fig. 1), and food intake also showed significant seasonal variability, higher in winter and lower in summer (Fig. 1). Serum leptin level also had similar seasonal variation, showing similar trend as body fat mass (Fig. 2), and serum leptin level showed a positive correlation with body fat mass (Fig. 3). Expression of hypothalamic neuropeptide NPY, AgRP, POMC and CART showed significant seasonal differences (Fig. 4). The above results suggest that Chevrier′s Field Mouse reduces body mass, body fat mass, increases food intake to survive in winter under seasonal changes. Leptin may play a regulatory role in body mass by acting on hypothalamic neuropeptide in Chevrier′s Field Mouse.

Abstract:In order to explore microstructure and expression of apoptosis-related protiens in Whooper Swan (Cygnus cygnus) kidney, paraffin sections of kidney were observed after H.E staining and expressions of Caspase-3, Bcl-2, Bax, and AQP-3 proteins were examined by immune histochemical methods. The results show that the kidney tissue of Whooper Swan consists of nephrons, collecting ducts and connective tissue. The glomerulus of renal corpuscle was composed of convoluted capillaries. The proximal tubule was lined with simple cuboidal epithelium, with a well-developed brush border. The thin limb and the distal tubule with brushless border respectively consist of simple squamous epithelium and cubic epithelium (Fig. 1a, b). Caspase-3, Bcl-2 and Bax were expressed in the epithelium of the proximal tubule. Caspase-3 was present in the distal tubule. Bcl-2 and AQP-3 were expressed in the collecting ducts. Bcl-2 was expressed occasionally in the endothelium of glomerular capillary (Fig. 1c﹣i). Caspase-3, Bcl-2, Bax and AQP-3 may have an important role in stabilizing the structure of nephron and collecting duct and the regulation of water balance in Whooper Swan kidney.

Abstract:The Yangtze River is the longest river in Asia and the third-longest in the world with more than 400 fish species existed. Chishui River is a major tributary of the upper Yangtze River and plays a vital role in the fish resources protection of the Yangtze River. Currently, evolutionary process of Longnose Gudgeon (Saurogobio dabryi), a fish species widely distributed in Asia, is not known. In this paper, 76 Longnose Gudgeon individuals collected from the upper Yangtze River (marked as Yibin population and Hejiang population respectively) and its tributary Chishui River (marked as Chishui population) were studied by using mitochondrial DNA cytochrome b gene sequences to analyze its genetic diversity and population history. The main results are: 1) The analyzed cytochrome b gene sequences were 1 097 base pairs in length, with 28 variable sites containing 18 parsimony informative sites. Besides, 26 haplotypes were identified from 76 individuals (Table 1), which showed relatively high haplotype diversity (Hd = 0.872) and low nucleotide diversity (Pi = 0.004 0) respectively (Table 2); 2) Three populations shared several common haplotypes. Phylogenetic trees based on haplotype dataset by using NJ, ML and BI methods showed that all haplotypes from the upper Yangtze River and Chishui River were not clustered separately according to the geographical distribution. Instead, they mixed with each other (Fig. 2). Network diagram was also constructed, indicating that all haplotypes had a star-shaped distribution, and original haplotype and evolutionary center could not be detected (Fig. 3). 3) based on obtained haplotype frequencies, genetic differentiation index (FST) values among three populations maintained at low levels (﹣0.029 3, 0.028 0 and 0.025 8, respectively) and analysis of molecular variance (AMOVA) showed that overall population divergent variation of Longnose Gudgeon in the upper Yangtze River was mainly from within populations (80.00%) (Table 3), indicating that Yibin population, Hejiang population, and Chishui River population belong to the same population with frequent gene flow; 4) Neutral test, mismatch analysis (Fig. 4) and BSP (Bayesian skyline plot) analysis (Fig. 5) showed that overall S. dabryi population from the upper Yangtze River and Chishui River experienced expansion during 0 to 0.025 Ma BP (before present).

Abstract:The histological structures of the dorsal-ventral skin in three species of genus Rana, Plateau Brown Frog (R. kukunoris), Chaochiao Brown Frog (R. chaochiaoensis) and Omei Brown Frog (R. omeimontis) were observed using paraffin section and hematoxylin-eosin staining. A paired t-test was used to analyse differences in thickness of skin, relative number of mucous glands and transverse areas of a mucous gland between dorsal and ventral skin in each species. Differences in thickness of skin and transverse areas of a mucous gland among species were tested using One-way ANOVA. We used Mann-Whitney U-test to compare differences in relative number of mucous glands and transverse areas of a granular gland among species, because normal distribution of the variance was not met. All statistical tests were performed using software SPSS 13.0. All values given were shown as Mean ± SD. The adaptive mechanism of skin to terrestrial environment was also discussed. The results show that the skin structures of 3 frog species studied are similar, composed of epidermis and dermis (PlateⅠ). The epidermis is keratinized stratified squamous epithelium, which is made up of stratum comeum, stratum granusum, stratum spinpsum and stratum germinativum. The dermis consists of two layers, the stratum spongiosum and the stratum compactum. The stratum spongiosum is mostly composed of loose connective tissue. The stratum compactum is made up of dense connective tissue. The collagen fibers in the stratum compactum lie in bundles parallel to the body surface. There are three types of cutaneous glands, mucous glands, granular glands and lipidic glands in the stratum spongiosum (PlateⅠ). The mucous glands are evenly distributed in the dorsal-ventral skin, however, the granular glands mostly are distributed in the dorsal skin in a cluster. A new type of eosinophil gland (Plate Ⅰ: 5, 8), different from mucous glands and granular glands described before, have been found in R. kukunoris. The skin thickness varies both between different species and between different regions of skin from the same animal (Table 1), and it is related to the size of mucous glands (Table 2). In R. kukunoris, the epidermis contains a few capillaries and rich chromatophores, and rich cutaneous glands exist in the stratum spongiosum, which is probably a strategy of adaption to environment with high altitude, low temperature, and strong ultraviolet radiation. The calcified layer lies between the stratum spongiosum and the stratum compacturn in R. chaochiaoensis and in R. omeimontis (PlateⅠ: 2﹣4, 10). It is a wavy strip and stains blue by hematoxylin-eosin staining. The calcified layer is more developed in the dorsal skin than in the ventral. Its function may be associated with hydric balance, calcium storage, or serve as a barrier in the exchange of substances.

Abstract:The study was designed to explore the distribution and shape of the 5-hydroxytryptamine (5-HT) cells, the somatostatin (SS) cells and the gastrin (GAS) cells in the stomach of Siberian Salamander (Salamandrella keyserlingii) during the post-embryonic development (from the stages 41 to 46) by avidin-biotin complex methods (ABC). The results indicated that the 5-hydroxytryptamine cells and the gastrin positive cells were firstly found in the stomach at the 41st stage. Then the somatostatin positive cells were detected at the 42nd stage. Statistic analysis of the same endocrine cells at different stages to in the stomach showed that the 5-hydroxytryptamine cells were found the least at the stage 41 (1.2 ± 0.51) by Duncan methods, and the most at the stage 46 (2.3 ± 0.91). With the development of stomach of Siberian Salamander, the 5-hydroxytryptamine cells showed an increasing trend. The gastrin cells were most widely distributed at the stage 42 (2.1 ± 0.99), followed by the stage 46 (1.7 ± 0.49) and the distribution quantity was the least at the stage 44 (1.0 ± 0.00). Their distribution trend from the stages 42 to 46 was first decrease and later increase. The density distribution of the somatostatin cells was the highest at the stage 43 (2.6 ± 0.99) exceeding the rest stages, with significant difference (P < 0.05, Table 1). Three kinds of endocrine cells firstly appeared among the epithelium cells, and with the development of stomach they distributed among the acinar epithelial cells (PlateⅠ). The morphology of endocrine cells varied in different development stages, such as the shapes of 5-hydroxytryptamine cells were from the round to the cone, the shapes of gastrin cells were from the cone to round then to cone, and the shapes of somatostatin cells were from the cone to the ellipse. The distribution and shape characteristics of these endocrine cells may adapt to the growth and development of Siberian Salamander and the function of the stomach.

Abstract:Succinea daucina was originally described by Pfeiffer in 1854 from Calcutta, India. In this paper, S. daucina collected from western Baiyanggou, Urumqi, Xinjiang (43°24.674′N, 87°08.620′E, altitude 1 785 m) was observed using anatomical methods. Two different colored shells were found in specimens, yellowish-brown and light yellow. Ten adult specimens of each colored shell were measured and dissected. Drawings of the internal structures were made with the aid of photographs taken using a D700 Nikon digital camera. Radula and jaw of three specimens of each different colored shell were photographed using a LEO 1430VP scanning electron microscope. The results showed that shell of S. daucina was elongate-ovate, medium-sized (10.06﹣12.90 mm in height, 6.28﹣8.56 mm in width), very thin, with 3﹣3.5 whorls (Fig. 1). Radular formula was 16-21:10-13:1:10-13:16-21. Central teeth were tricuspid, and lateral teeth and marginal teeth were bicuspid (Fig. 2). Body of living and alcohol-preserved specimens was cream-white with a small amount of black pigmentation (Fig. 3a). Receptaculum seminis was one. Albumen gland and prostate gland were big. Penis was thick-walled and tubular, and about 3/4 was enclosed by penial sheath (Fig. 3b, c). Two different colored shell specimens were one species, S. daucina, due to their same radula, jaw and anatomical characters. Voucher specimens were deposited in the College of Life Science and Technology, Xinjiang University.

Abstract:Penglai Milky Cucumber (Apostichopus japonicus) is a new strain in Sea Cucumber ranching and aquaculture. In this paper, for a better understanding and identifying the similarities and differences between Penglai Milky Cucumber and Common Sea Cucumber, and for evaluating the potential use and increasing the natural populations of Penglai Milky Cucumber, the embryonic and larval development was observed under the light microscope, and the time course of embryonic and larval development was confirmed. At the water temperature of 19﹣21℃ and salinity of 31, the first meiosis and second meiosis completed at 12 minutes and 24 minutes respectively after insemination (Fig. 2c, d); the eggs developed to 2 cells at 1 hour, completed a cleavage every 30 minutes, developed to the blastula at 6 hours, and to the gastrula at 19 hours. The fertilized eggs grew into early auricularia at 40 hours after fertilization (Fig. 3a), and then into the mid-auricularia and auricularia at 5 days and 8 days, respectively. In addition, an irregularly shaped calcareous bone appeared at the end of posterior arm of the larva, and the water cavity was observed on the same side (Fig. 4a). The larvae underwent metamorphosis to become doliolaria at 10 days, when the irregular bone developed into gear bone and the second calcareous bone appeared. The larvae developed to pentactula at 12 days, and to juvenile Sea Cucumber at 14 days. There was no significant difference in the developmental time course between Penglai Milky Cucumber and Common Sea Cucumber (Table 1). Penglai Milky Cucumber was in pure white on the whole body after juvenile stage. However, the Common Sea Cucumber showed some pigment at surface in 45 days, especially at the bottom of parapodum (Fig. 5b), and more than half of the juveniles were full of pigment at 60 days. In conclusion, Penglai Milky Cucumber is different from Common Sea Cucumber (Selenka) as indicated by its white body, which makes it attractive to. aquaculture companies and institutions, and the data of this study will provide reliable theoretical basis for Penglai Milky Cucumber′s research in the future.

Abstract:In order to study the effects of main morphological traits on body weight in Taimen (Hucho taimen), a total of 710 individuals (240 individuals of 3 month old, 180 individuals of 6 month old, 110 individuals of 12 month old, 90 individuals of 18 month old, 90 individuals of 36 month old) were randomly sampled for measuring the metric traits, including the body weight y, body length x1, body height x2, body depth x3, head length x4, eye diameter x5, caudal fin length x6, caudal fin height x7, caudal peduncle height x8. In order to study the effects of metric traits on body weight, the correlation analysis, path analysis and determination coefficients were calculated and multivariate regression equations were obtained. The results showed that the variation coefficient of bodyweight in different months old Taimen was the greatest, which could be achieved 25.52%, 17.92%, 24.99%, 18.45%, 13.03%, respectively (Table 1). The correlation coefficients between morphological traits and body weight were range from 0.017 to 0.963 (Table 2). The normality test results indicated that the 5 groups of samples data were considered as belonging to Gauss distribution by Shapiro-Wilk test and non-obvious discrimination by ANOVA (P > 0.05) (Table 3). As shown in Table 4, body length was the most important trait affected the body weight of 3, 6, 18 and 36 months old Taimen, and the body width was the most important trait affected the body weight of 12 months old Taimen. The results of determinant coefficients were consistent with that of path analysis (Table 5). The multiple regression equations were established as y3 =﹣14.911 + 1.561 x1 + 3.448 x2 + 5.232 x3 in 3-month-old Taimen, y6 =﹣70.321 + 5.192 x1 + 0.962 x2 + 0.473 x3 in 6-month-old Taimen, y12=﹣217.446 + 7.129 x1 + 23.147 x2 + 44.055 x3 in 12-month-old taimen, y18 =﹣891.041 + 20.234 x1 + 65.786 x2 + 53.266 x3 in 18-month-old Taimen, y36=﹣5748.099 + 88.187 x1 + 301.984 x2 + 66.702 x7 in 36-month-old Taimen, respectively. Above conclusions could provide important references and foundations for the selective breeding of taimen.

Abstract:In order to obtain the salmon and trout seeds with the advantages of hybrid and triploid, steelhead trout (salmon gairdneri) and brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis) reciprocal cross fertilized eggs of experimental induced by 6-dimethyl amino purine (6-DMAP) has been done. Hybridization results showed that the group eggs of brook trout (♀)×steelhead trout (♂) all died after 10 min after fertilization, and the development steelhead trout (♀)×brook charr (♂) fertilized eggs is normal, the triploid induction can be performed by 6-DMAP. With 6-DMAP in fertilized eggs result shows that the initial induction time for 12-15min, reached the highest eyed rate, 75.87%-76.64%, in the five initial induction time gradient groups, hatching rate between 86.44-90.31%, triploid rate between 92.45-95.55%, difference was not significant (P>0.05). The duration induced by 10-15min with 6-DMAP, reached the highest eyed rate 74.28-76.81%, in the five induced duration gradient groups, hatching rate between 87.28-90.24%, triploid rate between 93.67-96.25%, difference was not significant (P > 0.05). The fertilized eggs reach the highest eyed rate in induced concentration of 120-150 mg/L, 73.57-76.27%, in the five concentration gradient groups, the hatching rate between 88.57-90.03%, triploid rate between 92.56-96.38%, difference was not significant (P > 0.05).

Abstract:To study the growth and development characters of offspring of the Chinese Mitten Crab (Eriocheir sinensis) produced by female parents with varied body weight, we raised the offspring in the crab cages placed in a pond and performed four handlings (Fig. 1, 2). Group A: offsprings produce by females weighed 175.7 ± 5.3 g; group B: offsprings from females weighed 150.4 ± 5.8 g; group C and D: offsprings from females weighed 125.6 ± 5.5 g and 100.2 ± 5.9 g. The paternity of all the offspring were weighed 300.2 ± 9.6 g. We farmed 500 offspring of E. sinensis in each cage which is shaded by Altemanthena philoxeroides. We randomly sampled 30 offspring from each cage when 80%﹣85% individuals of the crab exuviated their shells according to the shelling curcles. Totally, we took 11 samples from each cage. We weighed each individual by analytical balance scale and measured hell length and width, body height by electronic digital calipers after drying their external water using absorbent paper. The took the vertical distance from the depression of head central to the tail as the shell length and the widest part of the shell is used as the shell width, the vertical distance between the highest point of the back and abdominal as the body height. We udsed Excel and SPSS 22.0 software to analyze our data. After 158 days of cultivation, the weight of offspring increased from 6.0 ± 0.5 mg to 7 599.8 ± 954.78 mg for group A, 6 232.7 ± 638.68 mg for group B, and 6 112.4 ± 854.63 mg, 5 316.0 ± 745.25 mg for group C and D,expectively. The specific growth rate of offspring in group A was significantly higher than those in group D (P < 0.05). The weight of group A was significantly higher than B, C, D group after 6﹣11 times molting (P < 0.05); The weight of D group was significantly lower than those in group A, B, C at the 6th, 7th, 10th, 11th times of molting (P < 0.05) (Fig. 3, Table 2). The shell length of individuals in group A was significantly longer than those in group B, C, D group at the 7th, 8th, 10th, 11 th times of molting (P < 0.05); the shell length of individuals in group D was significantly short than those in group A, B, C after the 11th times of molting (P < 0.05) (Fig. 4, Table 2). Except the 3th times of molting, the shell width of offspring in group A was significantly wider than those in group B, C, D (P < 0.05); the shell width offspring in group D was significantly narrower than those in group A, B, C group after the 9th and 11th times of molting (P < 0.05) (Fig. 5, Table 2). Except the 3th and 6th times molting, the body height of individuals in group A was significantly higher than those in group B, C, D (P < 0.05); the body height of individual in group D was significantly lower than those in grougp A, B, and C after the 2th, 8th, 9th, 10th, 11th times of molting (P < 0.05) (Fig. 6, Table 2). The best composite indicator (weight, shell length, shell width, body height) of the juvenile crab was taken in the individuals in group A which was significantly better than those in group B, C, D (P < 0.05); The next best measurement was taken from in dividuals in group B and C. All the measurement taken from individuals in group D was worst. No any significant difference in all the measurement taken from individuals from group B and group C (P > 0.05), all the composite indicators from offspring in Group B and C were significantly better than the those from group D (Table 2). The highest survival rate was taken from group B which was 1.4%, 3.6%, 4.6% higher than those from group A, D and C respectively; this value from group A was 2.2% and 3.2% higher than that from group D and group C respectively. The survival rate from individuals in group D was 1.4% higher than that from group C (Table 3). Our study indicated that in the one year seed breed phase, the offspring produced by female parent with larger sizes had a superior growth traits than those produced by female parent with smaller sizes.

Abstract:Egg laying order in birds has important impact on the nutritional ingredients in egg yolk, egg shell pigments and egg shell thickness. Some bird species may control their resource allocation in eggs to achieve the optimal reproductive output by different egg laying order. Here we investigated egg coloration, egg size and egg mass with egg laying order in Russet Sparrow (Passer cinnamomeus) and analyzed their relationships. We found that egg mass increased with egg size in this sparrow, and both of them were not changed with the egg laying order. Furthermore, neither egg size (F4,77 = 0.356, P = 0.839, ANOVA) nor egg mass (F4,77 = 0.391, P = 0.815, ANOVA) correlated with egg coloration (Fig. 1). However, the chroma of egg background color decreased whilst egg markings density (Fig. 2) increased with the egg laying order. The decrease in egg background chroma (Fig. 3) may reflect the allocation of limited pigments within a clutch while the change in egg markings density implied that Russet Sparrow might increase egg markings density to compensate for the decrease in eggshell thickness with the egg laying order.

Abstract:Chinese Alligator (Alligator sinensis) is a rare species endemic to China. Up to now, the growth and reproduction of Chinese Alligator have been received much attention. In this paper, we used the color doppler ultrasonic diagnostic apparatus (VIVIDⅠ) to examine the abdomen of 17 adult female alligators in March (hibernating period) and June (breeding season) 2014, respectively, and the sizes of ovarian follicles in March was analyzed by regression analysis using SPSS 19.0 software. The internal organs including heart, liver and intestine were clearly observed. A total of 41 follicles during hibernating period and 42 follicles during breeding season were examined. Follicles in low or no echo dark area were immature during hibernation. Follicular development in reproduction period was basically the same as in March. A handful of follicles in high echo dark space had formed yolk granules while others in high echo light area had formed the vitelline membrane. Regression analysis of 19 follicles′sizes indicated that the ovary size increased with the follicular development. The shapes of organs as well as the structure of heart were readily discernible with ultrasonography. Process of blood flow in heart could be detected by color doppler ultrasound. Heart rates were 12 and 43 counts per minute in hibernating period and breeding season, respectively. We show that ultrasonography is a low-invasive way that can be used to assess follicular development. In Chinese Alligator, which increases accuracy of sieving in breeding alligator.

Abstract:During a fieldwork in south Shanxi for the biodiversity survey project supported by the Ministry of Environmental Protection, We observed the Sooty Tit Aegithalos fuliginosus at the two localities. Referred to literatures, we confirm this is the new record of the Sooty Tit distribution in Shanxi province. We imply that the new record may be related to the northward distribution range expansion in many species in recent decades due to the global warming.

Abstract:

Abstract:The survey of avian diversity of Luoxiao Mountains was carried out in 2015. Two species of Passerine birds were observed in Bamianshan, Guidong County, Hunan Province, resulted in field observation and comparison with field guide, they were identified as Grey-crowned Warbler Seicercus tephrocephalus and Hill Prinia Prinia atrogularis, which were new records of birds to Hunan.

Abstract:Grey-crested Tit (Parus dichrous) Found in Shennongjia Hubei Province

Abstract:Two nests of golden eagle were found on 13th April, 2015, and 21th April, 2016, respectively, on the ledges of a cliff in Wanyuan (32.1216°N, 108.1244°E, 1360 m a.s.l.), Sichuan. We carefully monitored its breeding behavior using camera and quad-rotor. The breeding failed before 13th May 2015, but succeeded in 14th June, 2016 with only one fledging.