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Sex differences in vertebrate spatial abilities are typically interpreted under the adaptive specialization hypothesis, which posits that male reproductive success is linked to larger home ranges and better navigational skills. The androgen spillover hypothesis counters that enhanced male spatial performance may be a byproduct of higher androgen levels. Animal groups that include species where females are expected to outperform males based on life-history traits are key for disentangling these hypotheses. We investigated the association between sex differences in reproductive strategies, spatial behavior, and androgen levels in three species of poison frogs. We tracked individuals in natural environments to show that contrasting parental sex roles shape sex differences in space use, where the sex performing parental duties shows wider-ranging movements. We then translocated frogs from their home areas to test their navigational performance and found that the caring sex outperformed the non-caring sex only in one out of three species. In addition, males across species displayed more explorative behavior than females and androgen levels correlated with explorative behavior and homing accuracy. Overall, we reveal that poison frog reproductive strategies shape movement patterns but not necessarily navigational performance. Together this work suggests that prevailing adaptive hypotheses provide an incomplete explanation of sex differences in spatial abilities.more » « less
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High-energy cosmic rays that hit the Earth can be used to study large-scale atmospheric perturbations. After a first interaction in the upper parts of the atmosphere, cosmic rays produce a shower of particles that sample it down to the detector level. The HAWC (High-Altitude Water Cherenkov) gamma-ray observatory in Central Mexico at 4,100 m elevation detects air shower particles continuously with 300 water Cherenkov detectors with an active area of 12,500 m2. On January 15th, 2022, HAWC detected the passage of the pressure wave created by the explosion of the Hunga volcano in the Tonga islands, 9,000 km away, as an anomaly in the measured rate of shower particles. The HAWC measurements are used to determine the propagation speed of four pressure wave passages, and correlate the variations of the shower particle rates with the barometric pressure changes. The profile of the shower particle rate and atmospheric pressure variations for the first transit of the pressure wave at HAWC is compared to the pressure measurements at the Tonga island, near the volcanic explosion. By using the cosmic-ray propagation in the atmosphere as a probe for the pressure, it is possible to achieve very high time-resolution measurements. Moreover, the high-altitude data from HAWC allows to observe the shape of the pressure anomaly with less perturbations compared to sea level detectors. Given the particular location and the detection method of HAWC, our high-altitude data provides valuable information that contributes to fully characterize this once-in-a-century phenomenon.more » « less
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