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1963 kam der erste Kassettenrekorder auf den Markt: unscheinbar beige-grau, batteriebetrieben und so handlich, dass er in eine Manteltasche passte. In den Jahrzehnten danach eroberte die Kassette in einer stürmischen Erfolgsgeschichte den Alltag der Menschen - etwa als Mixtape, Demoband oder Sprachlernkassette. Eine Kassettenkultur entstand: Mit Walkman, Ghettoblaster und Autoradio waren die Medien plötzlich überall dabei.In einer kurzweiligen und unterhaltsamen Studie spürt Pia Fruth der Geschichte der Kassette aus verschiedenen Perspektiven nach. Mit der Auswertung neuer Quellen, die von internen Materialien der Firma Philips bis zu Zeitzeugen-Interviews reichen, schließt sie eine Lücke in der bisherigen Forschungsliteratur.

1963 kam der erste Kassettenrekorder auf den Markt: unscheinbar beige-grau, batteriebetrieben und so handlich, dass er in eine Manteltasche passte. In den Jahrzehnten danach eroberte die Kassette in einer stürmischen Erfolgsgeschichte den Alltag der Menschen - etwa als Mixtape, Demoband oder Sprachlernkassette. Eine Kassettenkultur entstand: Mit Walkman, Ghettoblaster und Autoradio waren die Medien plötzlich überall dabei. In einer kurzweiligen und unterhaltsamen Studie spürt Pia Fruth der Geschichte der Kassette aus verschiedenen Perspektiven nach. Mit der Auswertung neuer Quellen, die von internen Materialien der Firma Philips bis zu Zeitzeugen-Interviews reichen, schließt sie eine Lücke in der bisherigen Forschungsliteratur.

Observations of animals in the wild can result in the discovery of plants for human medicinal purposes. In this context, our closest relatives, the great apes, are of particular interest. The Euphorbiaceae Manniophyton fulvum possesses both phytochemical and biomechanical properties. Its use in the genus Pan (P. troglodytes; P. paniscus) is thought to be based on its mechanical properties promoting the egestion of intestinal parasites, but additional observations from different habitats where the behavior is performed may shed more light on its true purpose. To improve our understanding of what triggers this behavior, we investigated M. fulvum consumption in wild bonobos at LuiKotale, Democratic Republic of the Congo between December 2018 and July 2020. Specifically, we tested the hypothesis that M. fulvum ingestion is related to gastro-intestinal parasite expulsion. Of 649 focal follows of 37 individuals from two habituated communities, consumption of M. fulvum was observed on 111 days (N = 507), independent of seasons, environmental factors and the plant's availability. A total of 588 fecal samples were assessed for the presence/absence of gastro-intestinal parasites. We found strongyle eggs in 2.89% of samples and their presence was not associated with the ingestion of M. fulvum or environmental conditions. We discuss the importance of seasonality in the life cycle of strongyle species that may influence the pattern of M. fulvum consumption observed at LuiKotale. Our data open additional perspectives concerning behavioral parameters such as the existence of a cultural component when comparing ingestion behavior between communities.

Since 1994, IUCN Red List assessments apply globally acknowledged standards to assess species distribution, abundance and trends. The extinction risk of a species has a major impact on conservation science and international funding mechanisms. Great ape species are listed as Endangered or Critically Endangered. Their populations are often assessed using their unique habit of constructing sleeping platforms, called nests. As nests rather than apes are counted, it is necessary to know the time it takes for nests to disappear to convert nest counts into ape numbers. However, nest decomposition is highly variable across sites and time and the factors involved are poorly understood. Here, we used 1,511 bonobo (Pan paniscus) nests and 15 years of climatic data (2003–2018) from the research site LuiKotale, Democratic Republic of the Congo, to investigate the effects of climate change and behavioural factors on nest decay time, using a Bayesian gamma survival model. We also tested the logistic regression method, a recommended time-efficient option for estimating nest decay time. Our climatic data showed a decreasing trend in precipitation across the 15 years of study. We found bonobo nests to have longer decay times in recent years. While the number of storms was the main factor driving nest decay time, nest construction type and tree species used were also important. We also found evidence for bonobo nesting behaviour being adapted to climatic conditions, namely strengthening the nest structure in response to unpredictable, harsh precipitation. By highlighting methodological caveats, we show that logistic regression is effective in estimating nest decay time under certain conditions. Our study reveals the impact of climate change on nest decay time in a tropical remote area. Failure to account for these changes would invalidate biomonitoring estimates of global significance, and subsequently jeopardize the conservation of great apes in the wild.

National audience ; La conservation des forêts afrotropicales dépend non seulement de la protection des habitats, mais également de la protection d'espèces menacées d'extinction (IUCN 2011). Les primates frugivores sont reconnus comme d'important disperseurs de graines. Dans le site de LuiKotale (forêt tropicale de la Cuvette centrale, RD Congo) le rôle de dispersion de graines par les bonobos ( Pan paniscus ) a été étudié. Les bonobos sont principalement frugivores (66 % des sessions d'alimentation), passant environ 3,5 heures par jour à avaler des fruits et leurs graines, qui sont transportées pendant environ 24 heures. Ces graines appartiennent à plus de 91 espèces dispersées endozoochoriquement à une distance moyenne de 1,2 kilomètre de l'arbre--‐parent. Les graines passées par le tube digestif des bonobos germent plus rapidement, à des taux plus élevés, et avec une plus grande survie post dispersion. Notre estimation porte à 40 % le taux d'espèces d'arbres dispersés par les bonobos, soit 65 % de l'abondance relative. Presque toutes les espèces bonobo--‐dispersées étudiées (95 %), ne peuvent recruter sans dispersion. Du fait d'un manque de redondance fonctionnelle avec les autres animaux, les bonobos doivent influencer la structure et l'écologie forestière de leur système. Leur disparition attendue serait critique. Nos conclusions classent les bonobos comme probables jardiniers de la forêt du Congo.