Abstract: Horse liver alcohol dehydrogenase has been claimed to exhibit presteady-state “half-of-the-sites” reactivity with aromatic substrates under some circumstances. To clarify the role of half-of-the-sites reactivity in liver alcohol dehydrogenase the direct sampling of the alcohol product formed immediately after initiation of the reaction was studied using a rapid sampling device and [4α-3H]NADH. Liver alcohol dehydrogenase which contained a very low mole-ratio of [4α-3H]NADH bound to one subunit of the dimer was rapidly mixed with excess 4-(2'-imidazolylazo)benzaldehyde substrate and nonradioactive NADH to initiate the reaction, which was allowed to proceed for a short time before it was quenched. If strong HClO4 quench was used isolation of total free and bound azoalcohol product was possible. If NaOH quench was used isolation only of the azoalcohol product released by the enzyme was possible since most enzyme-bound azoalcohol was reversed back to azoaldehyde by the base. The pH-jump reversal reaction also was characterized spectroscopically by stopped flow technique. Nearly fullsites reactivity was observed for reaction in either direction. Furthermore (4α-3H]NADH bound firstly to one subunit in the dimer reacted essentially identically to NADH bound secondly to the other subunit. Thus, half-of-the-sites reactivity was not observed in these experiments nor did they give any indication of liver alcohol dehydrogenase active site nonequivalence induced by coenzyme binding or reaction.

Abstract: For red deer stags, fighting both has appreciable costs and yields considerable benefits. Up to 6% of rutting stags are permanently injured each year, while fighting success and reproductive success are closely related, within age groups as well as across them. Fighting behaviour is sensitive to changes in the potential benefits of fighting: stags fight most frequently and most intensely where potential benefits are high and tend to avoid fighting with individuals they are unlikely to beat. The relevance of these findings to theoretical models of fighting behaviour is discussed.

Abstract: I report an experiment aimed at testing whether foraging efficiency of great tits is limited by light intensity at the time of the dawn chorus. Captive great tits hunting for prey under different luminance conditions were less successful in finding prey when foraging, hunted for a lower proportion of their time, and handled individual prey items for longer when luminance was under approximately 7 cd/m2. This luminance is not reached in the field until after the time of the dawn chorus, suggesting that in the early morning foraging is limited by light intensity. I suggest that a satisfactory functional explanation of the dawn chorus must take into account the comparatively low foraging opportunity early in the morning, as well as the factors affecting the opportunity for singing and other territorial activities.

Abstract: Dogs were observed during controlled approaches by their owners and by strangers. Significant differences between the dogs' responses to their owners and their responses to strangers were found. These results supported the popular belief that dogs respond differently to different persons, and not merely to different situations in which persons are usually encountered.