Hot off the presses! Jul 01 Trends Ecol Evol

The Jul 01 issue of the Trends Ecol Evol is now up on Pubget (About Trends Ecol Evol): if you're at a subscribing institution, just click the link in the latest link at the home page. (Note you'll only be able to get all the PDFs in the issue if your institution subscribes to Pubget.)

Latest Articles Include:

• Editorial Board
  - Trends Ecol Evol 24(7):i (2009)
  
• Hear, hear: the convergent evolution of echolocation in bats?
  - Trends Ecol Evol 24(7):351-354 (2009)
  The evolutionary history of laryngeal echolocation is controversial, and little is known about the molecular mechanisms that underlie this sense. A recent paper by Li and colleagues is one of the first studies to identify and sequence a gene involved in echolocation in bats – Prestin, the so-called mammalian hearing gene. Phylogenetic analyses show evidence for positive selection acting on this gene in the echolocating lineages and support the convergent evolution of laryngeal echolocation in bats.
• Galactorrhoea is not lactation
  - Trends Ecol Evol 24(7):354-355 (2009)
  
• But is it male lactation or not?
  - Trends Ecol Evol 24(7):355 (2009)
  
• What everyone needs to know about evolution
  - Trends Ecol Evol 24(7):356-357 (2009)
  
• What can function tell us about mechanism?
  - Trends Ecol Evol 24(7):357-358 (2009)
  
• Invasion biology deconstructed
  - Trends Ecol Evol 24(7):358-359 (2009)
  
• Pelagic protected areas: the missing dimension in ocean conservation
  - Trends Ecol Evol 24(7):360-369 (2009)
  Fewer protected areas exist in the pelagic ocean than any other ecosystem on Earth. Although there is increasing support for marine protected areas (MPAs) as a tool for pelagic conservation, there have also been numerous criticisms of the ecological, logistical and economic feasibility of place-based management in the dynamic pelagic environment. Here we argue that recent advances across conservation, oceanography and fisheries science provide the evidence, tools and information to address these criticisms and confirm MPAs as defensible and feasible instruments for pelagic conservation. Debate over the efficacy of protected areas relative to other conservation measures cannot be resolved without further implementation of MPAs in the pelagic ocean.
• Kin competition and the evolution of cooperation
  - Trends Ecol Evol 24(7):370-377 (2009)
  Kin and multilevel selection theories predict that genetic structure is required for the evolution of cooperation. However, local competition among relatives can limit cooperative benefits, antagonizing the evolution of cooperation. We show that several ecological factors determine the extent to which kin competition constrains cooperative benefits. In addition, we argue that cooperative acts that expand local carrying capacity are less constrained by kin competition than other cooperative traits, and are therefore more likely to evolve. These arguments are particularly relevant to microbial cooperation, which often involves the production of public goods that promote population expansion. The challenge now is to understand how an organism's ecology influences how much cooperative groups contribute to future generations and thereby the evolution of cooperation.
• How feasible is the biological control of coral diseases?
  - Trends Ecol Evol 24(7):378-385 (2009)
  The worldwide decline of coral reefs necessitates the development of strategies aimed at controlling coral disease. As a result, various biological approaches are being considered as tools for coral disease management. For example, phage therapy has been shown to be effective in removing pathogens under laboratory conditions, showing promise for the treatment of specific pathogens; in addition, mutualistic bacteria compete with pathogens and produce antibiotics, properties that are both known to be important for biological control. Here we evaluate the probiotic potential of native mutualistic bacteria as a means of controlling coral diseases caused by opportunistic pathogens or their consortia. Monitoring native coral-associated microbiota for functions associated with resistance to pathogens could also serve as an additional indicator of reef health.
• Gene flow and species delimitation
  - Trends Ecol Evol 24(7):386-393 (2009)
  A defining feature of species is that their constituting populations are connected by gene flow. However, interspecific gene flow (introgression) can affect species integrity. If some genome components were less prone to introgression than others, they should be particularly suitable to delimitate species. Recent simulation studies have predicted a negative correlation between intra- and interspecific gene flow, suggesting that markers associated with the most dispersing sex should better delimitate species. A review of studies of introgression in species with sex-biased dispersal largely confirms this prediction. Hence, species delimitation should be more effective with markers experiencing high levels of gene flow, a simple but not widely appreciated prediction.
• Adaptive radiation, nonadaptive radiation, ecological speciation and nonecological speciation
  - Trends Ecol Evol 24(7):394-399 (2009)
  Radiations of ecologically and morphologically differentiated sympatric species can exhibit the pattern of a burst of diversification, which might be produced by ecological divergence between populations, together with the acquisition of reproductive isolation ('ecological speciation'). Here we suggest that this pattern could also arise if speciation precedes significant ecological differentiation (i.e. through geographical isolation and nonadaptive radiation). Subsequently, species ecologically differentiate and spread into sympatry. Alternative routes to producing ecologically differentiated sympatric species are difficult to detect in old radiations. However, nonadaptive radiations are common and might therefore regularly be responsible for currently ecologically differentiated sympatric species (e.g. among groups that are not susceptible to ecological speciation). Species evolving nonadaptively over long periods might eventually replace young, ecologically prod! uced species.
• Speed–accuracy tradeoffs in animal decision making
  - Trends Ecol Evol 24(7):400-407 (2009)
  The traditional emphasis when measuring performance in animal cognition has been overwhelmingly on accuracy, independent of decision time. However, more recently, it has become clear that tradeoffs exist between decision speed and accuracy in many ecologically relevant tasks, for example, prey and predator detection and identification; pollinators choosing between flower species; and spatial exploration strategies. Obtaining high-quality information often increases sampling time, especially under noisy conditions. Here we discuss the mechanisms generating such speed–accuracy tradeoffs, their implications for animal decision making (including signalling, communication and mate choice) and the significance of differences in decision strategies among species, populations and individuals. The ecological relevance of such tradeoffs can be better understood by considering the neuronal mechanisms underlying decision-making processes.