Abstract The science of sensory ecology formally emerged in the book of Ali (1978), when behavioral ecology was gaining popularity. Until 2020, three main books were written on the subject, in 1992 (Dusenbery 1992), 2001 (Barth & Schmid 2001) and 2013 (Stevens 2013). The definitions of sensory ecology provided by Ali emphasize adaptation, optimality and fitness. These are main concepts of behavioral ecology but the last two are not necessarily fundamentals of sensory ecology. Here I looked at the evolution of the concept of sensory ecology and tried to understand whether there is evidence that the definitions given in 1978 had been influenced by behavioral ecology. I have counted the appearances of these three words (adapt*, optim* and fitness) in these books, divided by the number of words in each book, and compared the numbers to the definitions of sensory ecology given. Authors in Ali´s book often use adaptation but seldom deal with optimality or fitness. I suggest that the appearance of these keywords of behavioral ecology in the definitions of sensory ecology in Ali´s book was maybe a necessity to fit in the paradigms of that time. Sensory ecology was actually mechanistic in 1978 and 1992. Sensory ecology is now both mechanistic and evolutionary.

ABSTRACT The non-random occupation of habitats is termed habitat selection. Some species of whip spiders select trees with burrows at their base, while others use substrates such as rocks. Here, we investigated the habitat use by Charinus asturius Pinto-da-Rocha, Machado & Weygoldt, 2002, an endemic species of Ilhabela Island in Brazil. We found that C. asturius is more likely to be found under rocks that cover larger areas of substrate. Our results also suggest the existence of territorialism in C. asturius and show that C. asturius adults may be found again on the same rock a week later. Additionally, our data show that C. asturius is present in a greater area of Ilhabela than previously documented.

Embora a teoria da evolução tenha mais de 150 anos, uma proporção substancial da população mundial não se refere a ela para explicar a origem dos seres humanos. A alternativa conceitual usual é oferecida pelo criacionismo, um dos principais obstáculos à aceitação plena da Evolução em muitos países. Pesquisas nacionais demonstraram que nível de instrução e religiosidade estão correlacionados negativamente, com os cientistas como sendo um dos profissionais menos religiosos. Aqui analisamos tanto (1) o perfil dos calouros do 1º semestre de 2011 como (2) as teses e as dissertações, com relação à expressão de concepções religiosas e evolutivas, das faculdades de Biologia e Veterinária da maior universidade da América do Sul. Demonstramos que os estudantes de Biologia tendem ao evolucionismo antes mesmo de entrar na universidade e que a presença de uma atmosfera acadêmica evolucionista influencia a expressão de deísmo/religiosidade entre os estudantes de pós-graduação.

Although the theory of evolution is more than 150 years old, a substantial proportion of the world population does not mention it when explaining the origin of human beings. The usual alternative conception is offered by creationism, one of the main obstacles to full acceptance of evolution in many countries. National polls have demonstrated that schooling and religiosity are negatively correlated, with scientists being one of the least religious professionals. Herein we analyzed both (1) the profile of 1st semester undergraduate students and (2), thesis and dissertations, concerning religious and evolutionary thoughts from Biology and Veterinary Schools at the largest university of South America. We have shown that students of Biology are biased towards evolution before they enter university and also that the presence of an evolutionary-thinking academic atmosphere influences the deism/religiosity beliefs of postgraduate students.