Beginning with Emlen (1966) and MacArthur and Pianka (1966) and extending through the last ten years, several authors have sought to predict the foraging behavior of animals by means of mathematical models. These models are very similar,in that they all assume that the fitness of a foraging animal is a function of the efficiency of foraging measured in terms of some "currency" (Schoener, 1971) -usually energy- and that natural selection has resulted in animals that forage so as to maximize this fitness. As a result of these similarities, the models have become known as "optimal foraging models"; and the theory that embodies them, "optimal foraging theory." The situations to which optimal foraging theory has been applied, with the exception of a few recent studies, can be divided into the following four categories: (1) choice by an animal of which food types to eat (i.e., optimal diet); (2) choice of which patch type to feed in (i.e., optimal patch choice); (3) optimal allocation of time to different patches; and (4) optimal patterns and speed of movements. In this review we discuss each of these categories separately, dealing with both the theoretical developments and the data that permit tests of the predictions. The review is selective in the sense that we emphasize studies that either develop testable predictions or that attempt to test predictions in a precise quantitative manner. We also discuss what we see to be some of the future developments in the area of optimal foraging theory and how this theory can be related to other areas of biology. Our general conclusion is that the simple models so far formulated are supported are supported reasonably well by available data and that we are optimistic about the value both now and in the future of optimal foraging theory. We argue, however, that these simple models will requre much modification, espicially to deal with situations that either cannot easily be put into one or another of the above four categories or entail currencies more complicated that just energy.

Citation classic - optimal foraging - a selective review of theory and tests

Nicotine is of importance as the addictive chemical in tobacco, pharmacotherapy for smoking cessation, a potential medication for several diseases, and a useful probe drug for phenotyping cytochrome P450 2A6 (CYP2A6). We review current knowledge about the metabolism and disposition kinetics of nicotine, some other naturally occurring tobacco alkaloids, and nicotine analogs that are under development as potential therapeutic agents. The focus is on studies in humans, but animal data are mentioned when relevant to the interpretation of human data. The pathways of nicotine metabolism are described in detail. Absorption, distribution, metabolism, and excretion of nicotine and related compounds are reviewed. Enzymes involved in nicotine metabolism including cytochrome P450 enzymes, aldehyde oxidase, flavin-containing monooxygenase 3, amine N-methyltransferase, and UDP-glucuronosyltransferases are represented, as well as factors affecting metabolism, such as genetic variations in metabolic enzymes, effects of diet, age, gender, pregnancy, liver and kidney diseases, and racial and ethnic differences. Also effects of smoking and various inhibitors and inducers, including oral contraceptives, on nicotine metabolism are discussed. Due to the significance of the CYP2A6 enzyme in nicotine clearance, special emphasis is given to the effects and population distributions of CYP2A6 alleles and the regulation of CYP2A6 enzyme.

Metabolism and Disposition Kinetics of Nicotine

Many woody plants can resprout and many ecosystems are dominated by resprouters. They persist in situ through disturbance events such as fire, flooding or wind storms. However, the importance of 'persistence' in plant demography has been neglected in favour of 'recruitment'. Thus much research on plant regeneration, conservation and evolution has focused on the importance of safe sites, seed and seedling banks, dispersal and germination with the implied importance of de novo replacement rather than persistence. Recent research shows a growing appreciation for the role of sprouting as a form of persistence in a diversity of ecosystems and tradeoffs between the two regeneration modes.

Ecology of sprouting in woody plants: the persistence niche.

The Vegetation of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland

Phylogenetic analysis of 330 plastid matK gene sequences, representing 235 genera from 37 of 39 tribes, and four outgroup taxa from eurosids I supports many well-resolved subclades within the Leguminosae. These results are generally consistent with those derived from other plastid sequence data (rbcL and trnL), but show greater resolution and clade support overall. In particular, the monophyly of subfamily Papilionoideae and at least seven major subclades are well-supported by bootstrap and Bayesian credibility values. These subclades are informally recognized as the Cladrastis clade, genistoid sensu lato, dalbergioid sensu lato, mirbelioid, millettioid, and robinioid clades, and the inverted-repeat-lacking clade (IRLC). The genistoid clade is expanded to include genera such as Poecilanthe, Cyclolobium, Bowdichia, and Diplotropis and thus contains the vast majority of papilionoids known to produce quinolizidine alkaloids. The dalbergioid clade is expanded to include the tribe Amorpheae. The mirbelioids include the tribes Bossiaeeae and Mirbelieae, with Hypocalypteae as its sister group. The millettioids comprise two major subclades that roughly correspond to the tribes Millettieae and Phaseoleae and represent the only major papilionoid clade marked by a macromorphological apomorphy, pseudoracemose inflorescences. The robinioids are expanded to include Sesbania and members of the tribe Loteae. The IRLC, the most species-rich subclade, is sister to the robinioids. Analysis of the matK data consistently resolves but modestly supports a clade comprising papilionoid taxa that accumulate canavanine in the seeds. This suggests a single origin for the biosynthesis of this most commonly produced of the nonprotein amino acids in legumes.

https://bsapubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/pdf/10.3732/ajb.91.11.1846

A phylogeny of legumes (Leguminosae) based on analysis of the plastid matK gene resolves many well-supported subclades within the family.

A broad review of commercially important southern African medicinal plants

The potential of South African plants in the development of new medicinal products

 Plant lists according to class of toxin and type of livestock poisoning as well as a useful checklist of poisonous plants and a glossary of medical terms. 288p. HC, R 495 Historical Overberg C. Schoeman Situated between the Hottentots Holland Mountains and the Breede River, the Overberg is an important agricultural region and a popular holiday destination for tourists and nature lovers who delight in the beauty of its mountainous landscape, abundant plant species and long sandy beaches. But this area also has a rich history going back thousands of years, when the indigenous Khoi people originally thrived there, before the first European settlers arrived to leave their own indelible imprint on the culture, architecture and character of the region. This book provides a detailed account of this past by pointing out the many places, buildings, events and personalities that have made the Overberg the diverse and unique place that it is today. The Overberg has been a home or point of interest for explorers, innovators, artists and writers, for figures as varied as Bartholome Diaz, Olof Bergh, Hendrik Verwoerd, Gregoire Boonzaier, Audrey Blignaut and Breyten Breytenbach. Some of South Africa’s oldest towns, houses and missionary stations can be found here, and its treacherous coastline has been the cause of hundreds of shipwrecks for centuries. Enlivened by historical and current photographs and informative side panels, this book is a collector’s item. 222 p, HC., R 285 Also available: Historical Karoo R 280 HUTTEN-BUCHDIENST Posbus 7234, Pretoria, 0001 Vuurklipstr.541 Die Wilgers T & F: 012 807 0434 072 229 2148 www.hutten.co.za hutten.buchdienst@gmail.com

Poisonous plants of South Africa

Reconstructing the deep-branching relationships of the papilionoid legumes

http://www.ethnopharmacologia.org/prelude/pdf/bibio-hv-09-van-wijk.pdf

B.-E. Van Wyk

Papers

A broad review of commercially important southern African medicinal plants

The potential of South African plants in the development of new medicinal products

Poisonous plants of South Africa

Reconstructing the deep-branching relationships of the papilionoid legumes

An ethnobotanical survey of medicinal plants in the southeastern Karoo, South Africa