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A Multiscale Linkage Between Riverscape And Fish Community Coevolution, Loren W. Stearman
A Multiscale Linkage Between Riverscape And Fish Community Coevolution, Loren W. Stearman
Dissertations
Sediment dynamics are foundational to stream and watershed morphology. Yet aquatic ecologists have relied on an oversimplified model of sediment dynamics characterizing sediments as agents of stream bed burial, and which fails to describe many types of aquatic habitat evolution. In this dissertation I employ both fluvial geomorphic and ecological frameworks to gain a deeper understanding of how sediment dynamics shape stream morphology and fish community evolution at multiple scales. Using a paired historic and contemporary approach, I analyzed geomorphic evolution and fish community change in the Bayou Pierre, Mississippi, from the 1980s to recent. Patterns of erosion due to …
Chemical And Biological Stressors Threaten Native Fish Diversity In The Spring River Subbasin Of Kansas, Alexandra King
Chemical And Biological Stressors Threaten Native Fish Diversity In The Spring River Subbasin Of Kansas, Alexandra King
Electronic Theses & Dissertations
Chemical pollution and nonnative species are two of the major threats facing freshwater fishes. As such, understanding how freshwater fish communities respond to pollution remediation efforts and nonnative fish introductions are primary goals of native fish conservation. Within the Spring River subbasin (SRS) of southeastern Kansas, this study examined the long-term response of riffle fish communities to decreases in heavy metal concentrations, as well as the effects of introduced Blackspotted Topminnow (Fundulus olivaceus) on native Blackstripe Topminnow (Fundulus notatus). The objectives of our research in Chapter 01 of this thesis were to quantify changes in riffle …
An Analysis Of The Spatial Genetic Structure Of A Hybrid Zone Between Two Species Of Killifish, Fundulus Heteroclitus And F. Grandis, Andrew Lee Hardy
An Analysis Of The Spatial Genetic Structure Of A Hybrid Zone Between Two Species Of Killifish, Fundulus Heteroclitus And F. Grandis, Andrew Lee Hardy
UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations
Hybridization offers unique insight into the evolutionary process of speciation and the forces that maintain barriers to reproduction. In northeast Florida, a hybrid zone between two species of killifish, Fundulus heteroclitus and F. grandis, has been identified near Flagler Beach, FL, although the exact boundaries of the hybrid zone remain unknown (Gonzalez et al. 2009). This study aims to determine the fine-scale spatial genetic patterns of the hybrid zone and test the hypothesis that species ranges are influenced by changes in dominant vegetation. Results from an ADMIXTURE analysis and FST data indicated the boundary of the area of …
Patterns Of Genomic Introgression In Topminnow Hybrid Zones, Amanda F. Ray
Patterns Of Genomic Introgression In Topminnow Hybrid Zones, Amanda F. Ray
Honors Theses
Hybridization and introgression are two important evolutionary mechanisms that can increase genetic diversity. Interesting introgression patterns can form when parental species have genes that confer some adaptive benefit to the organism. The Fundulus notatus species complex contains species with various identifying characterisics. Fundulus notatus, the blackstripe topminnow, and Fundulus olivaceus, the blackspotted topminnow, are closely related and occupy many of the same rivers in their preferred niches. These two species often hybridize and form hybrid zones where their niches overlap. We studied two hybrid zones located in the Tombigbee River and Spring River. Within each hybrid zone, we …
Evolution In Light Of Mitonuclear Landscapes: An Examination Of Mitochondrial Replacement In Killifish (Fundulus Spp.), Stephen D. Flanagan
Evolution In Light Of Mitonuclear Landscapes: An Examination Of Mitochondrial Replacement In Killifish (Fundulus Spp.), Stephen D. Flanagan
Dissertations
The mitochondria are responsible for the bulk of energy production in eukaryotes. They possess their own genome that works in conjunction with the nuclear genome to accomplish the extraordinarily important task of energy conversion. When species hybridize there will be a mismatch in evolutionary histories between these two genomes. The deleterious interactions of these genomes have been studied in great detail (i.e. hybrid breakdown). However, little work has been conducted to understand the population genetic, and morphological consequences of wide-ranging replacement. The Fundulus notatus complex is comprised of 3 species: F. notatus, F. olivaceus, and F. euryzonus. …
Ecological And Phenotypic Factors Influencing The Movement Dynamics Of The Blackspotted Topminnow, Fundulus Olivaceus, Scott Richard Clark
Ecological And Phenotypic Factors Influencing The Movement Dynamics Of The Blackspotted Topminnow, Fundulus Olivaceus, Scott Richard Clark
Dissertations
Movement of individuals throughout a landscape is a complex behavior that has important consequences on numerous ecological and evolutionary processes. Perhaps most notably is the relationship between movement and reproduction, as this has implicit ramifications on individual fitness and consequently, population level processes. Although this relationship has been theoretically and empirically demonstrated across a number of animal taxa, its role in fishes remains understudied and largely unknown. Using a series of outdoor mesocosms, in combination with a field study, I employed passive integrated transponder (PIT) tags to experimentally assess the sex-specific movement dynamics of a small-bodied, sexually-dimorphic stream fish, the …
Observations On The Life History Of The Bayou Killifish, Fundulus Pulvereus (Everman 1899) In Mississippi Tidal Marshes, Leah Corrine Gaines
Observations On The Life History Of The Bayou Killifish, Fundulus Pulvereus (Everman 1899) In Mississippi Tidal Marshes, Leah Corrine Gaines
Master's Theses
This study provides insight into the life history of the relatively unknown intertidal marsh fish Fundulus pulvereus (Everman), the bayou killifish. Monthly sampling for F. pulvereus took place in three different Mississippi tidal marshes over a period of 17 months (n=445). Observations on the diet, parasite fauna, and fecundity of the bayou killifish were documented on all specimens collected. Percent Occurrence and Percent Number coupled along with multivariate analyses indicated seasonal, site, and ontogenetic shifts in the diet of F. pulvereus. Dominant prey items consumed by F. pulvereus were copepods, mites, chironomids, and terrestrial and aquatic insects. The bayou …