2008). In addition, Hewson and Taylor (1975) have reported that in Scotland European hares reproduce in “winter”, too. Again, these finding shows that reproductive pattern is not affected by K or latitude but by actual winter temperatures irrespective of latitude. Despite identical annual reproductive outputs, females from Belgium and Lower Austria differed clearly in individual characteristics, namely age, body size and body condition. Adult females from Belgium were significantly smaller and had significantly lower body condition in late autumn compared to the Lower Austrian sample, although Belgian individuals were actually older

than Lower Austrians (based on relDLW). In general thermoregulatory costs are higher in individuals with lower body HIF inhibitor size (Tomasi and Horton 1992) which therefore have a reduced capacity to build up large fat depots for colder periods. This implies that the low K-value in Belgium does not result in a high selective pressure for larger body size in hares. In Belgium the climate is more equable with milder winters and moister summers. As a consequence energy demands in Belgian winters are lower resulting in comparatively little need for storing energy reserves like fat depots. Hence, we assume that hares in Belgium use the available food more for reproduction rather than for growth

and/or accumulation of energy reserves. These findings suggest that females in Belgium are more under an r-selection regime whereas Lower Austrian females might be more under K-selection within the r–K-continuum. We thank the hunting organisations selleck chemical in the study areas for support of sample collections. Theodora Steineck, Ivana Nabih, and Hichem Ben Slimen, among others, helped with processing the hares during and after the hunts. Eye lens preparations were carried out by Anita Haiden. The primary funding of

this study was provided by the Austrian Science Fund (FWF, project P18534 B03 granted to FS), and by the Government of Lower Austria. “
“Since 2007, scorpionism is the major cause of human envenomation by animals in Brazil, surpassing accidents with snakes and spiders Farnesyltransferase [4]. Most of the critical clinical cases are attributed to Tityus serrulatus scorpions, result of its wide proliferation in the urban centers and in the potential of its venom to induce severe clinical manifestations, being even fatal among children and elders. T. serrulatus venom (TsV) contains neurotoxins capable of interacting with the nervous system via ion channels and, because of that, research studies focus on neurotoxins descriptions and their mechanisms of action. Moreover, the presence of other compounds such as hyaluronidases, peptidases and biologically active peptides in TsV are poorly explored [6]. Animal venoms are a rich source of bioactive peptides due the large number and diversity of venomous species, and it is estimated that more than 40 million toxins may exist but only 0.01% were identified [15].