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Bird Appearances and Similarities
Figura, Roman ; Komárek, Stanislav (advisor) ; Daněk, Tomáš (referee) ; Jaroš, Filip (referee)
The presented work deals with a striking, yet usually neglected phenomenon by researchers, the similarity between the forms of different (closely unrelated) bird taxa. It mainly concerns visual signs of the body surface, the work also deals with other signs, including behavioral ones. The thesis demonstrates that these are not a few curious similarities, but a truly robust phenomenon, which apparently cannot be fully explained from a unifying point of view. Only some characters, which the work deals with, help their bearers to crypsis, aposematism or mimesis. In many other cases, their function is unknown. They can carry different functions in the life of their bearers, but it is often not possible to determine a single cause of their occurrence. In terms of the information contained, the work belongs to the largest works dealing with this topic known to the author.
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Adaptability and Phenotype Plasticity of Invasive Parrots in Europe
Nový, Jakub ; Figura, Roman (advisor) ; Makal, Jakub (referee)
The diploma thesis on Adaptability and Phenotypic Plasticity of Invasive Parrots in Europe deals with the analysis of a recent phenomenon, which is the emergence of non-native parrot populations in European cities. Until now, this issue has been studied mainly from the perspective of the fight against invasive species. So far much less is known about the ecological and ethological characteristics of these populations. Although most of the large non-indigenous populations are located in the territory of southern or northern Europe, this work also examined the observation and semi-wild population of parrots located in the Czech Republic. Research into phenotypic plasticity and overall adaptability of invasive species is also discussed here. The work includes hypotheses and theories related to the invasion process, including predictions of the future development of non-native populations.
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The image of reality - young artist's attitude to environmental problems in their creative activity and personal lives
Shiriaeva, Inessa ; Mašek, Tomáš (advisor) ; Figura, Roman (referee)
This qualitative diploma thesis deals with a specific view of art from the perspective of social science disciplines and in connection with the environmental problems of today. The theoretical part of the work is devoted to selected social and cultural concepts of the contemporary world, especially consumer society, waste and art, which puts in the context of the climate crisis. It describes the attributes of consumer society, the consequences of overproduction and consumption in the form of waste, which I further look through with the artistic eye. It addresses the social functions of art, its anchoring in social consciousness and the relationship with science. The empirical part of the work offers a view of the artistic environment, especially young artists on the climate crisis in both personal life and creation. It describes their motivations and limits leading to the sustainable implementation of the concept or activist approach to the audience in order to contribute to a better society. The work thus deals with the important role of artistic creation in our society. Keywords mass production, consumer society, climate change, recycling, waste material, art, activism
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Breeding and morphological differences of domestic dog
Nový, Jakub ; Figura, Roman (advisor) ; Komárek, Stanislav (referee)
Dog (Canis lupus f. familiaris) is one of the oldest domesticated animals and he has been by our side for several thousand years. Although we know a lot of different domesticated animal breeds but by far it didn't reach such distinction in case of dog. In my work I'll be examinating domestication of this beast and its breeding. Also I'll be dealing with breeds of dogs and especially with morphological differences between them. Key words: Canis lupus familiaris, domestication, breedig, morphology, breed
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Evolutional origin of the both-sexes exaggerated structures
Zběžek, Martin ; Komárek, Stanislav (advisor) ; Figura, Roman (referee)
In animal realm, we often meet with body structures that in varying degrees go beyond the limits of their effectiveness and may seems like a burden for its owner rather than a benefit. In case these exaggerated structures are found only with representatives of one sex (we don't think artificial selection applied by humans on their domesticated fauna or sporadic pathological mutations), it is usually not a problem to explain their evolutionary origin through sexual selection. In most of these cases it is sexual selection applied by females on males. The situation is getting complicated, when these traits are present on representatives of both sexes. The search for explanation is less straightforward, and while we are doing it, we must pay thorough attention to the ecology and genetic dispositions of the specific species. Key words animals, exaggerated structures, evolution
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The Mimicry of Coral Snakes and King Snakes and the Approaches of Adolf Portmann
Čtrnáctová, Lenka ; Figura, Roman (advisor) ; Brejcha, Jindřich (referee)
The problem of the supposedly mimetic relationship between some species of king snakes and coral snakes is rather scattered in literature and opinions on it vary greatly. In this work, I focus on summarizing and generalizing the existing pieces of knowledge about the colouration of these snakes and its consequences for evolutionary biology - neodarwinistic and especially portmannistic. In other words, natural selection does not solve all the questions and in this case in particular, it is obvious that mimesis interests not only biologists, but also mathematicians, chemists, physicists and philosophers. All of these are trying to find the answer to whether mimesis in these snakes is actually occurring and what would be the purpose of such colouration if it is not. Adolf Portmann is very clear on this subject: organisms show their inner properties on the outside as a means to self-present. The specific appearance is not determined and it does not have to have any adaptive value at all.
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