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Paradigm Of The Post Natural: Critiquing Capitalist Ideals Through Environmental Degradation, Andrea De Haro, Charlotte Bascombe Dec 2022

Paradigm Of The Post Natural: Critiquing Capitalist Ideals Through Environmental Degradation, Andrea De Haro, Charlotte Bascombe

Architecture Thesis Prep

There is an unspoken value in the destructiveness caused by design that is exposed through the exploitation of natural resources. This thesis seeks to exemplify the aesthetic value inherent within these newly defined environments. Nature is a source for human consumption, and as such it has developed into a commodity. By now it should be made evident that humanity’s presence is everywhere. There is no ecosystem left unturned by human manipulation Iin this respect, nature is dead. Deforested sites of oil fracking leave mile long toxic ponds highlighting the destructive pursuits that capitalism creates. Chernobyl showcases how human errors in …


Nexus Between Animal Welfare, Environment, And Sustainable Development: Resource Document, Wellbeing International Nov 2022

Nexus Between Animal Welfare, Environment, And Sustainable Development: Resource Document, Wellbeing International

Nexus – UNEP – Animal Welfare, Environment, Sustainable Development

This Resource Document has been developed to explore the Nexus (links) between Animal Welfare, the Environment, and Sustainable Development. The document includes relevant citations and reports addressing the topics encompassed by the Nexus. It will be maintained as a “living document” (subject to revision) in the WellBeing International Studies Repository. The original document and subsequent revisions will be kept in the Repository to provide a record of the changes.


A 1.8 Million Year History Of Amazon Vegetation, Andrea K. Kern, Thomas Kenji Akabane, Jaqueline Q. Ferreira, Cristiano M. Chiessi, Debra A. Willard, Fabricio Ferreira, Allan Oliveira Sanders, Cleverson G. Silva, Catherine Rigsby, Francisco W. Cruz, Gary S. Dwyer, Sherilyn C. Fritz, Paul A. Baker Nov 2022

A 1.8 Million Year History Of Amazon Vegetation, Andrea K. Kern, Thomas Kenji Akabane, Jaqueline Q. Ferreira, Cristiano M. Chiessi, Debra A. Willard, Fabricio Ferreira, Allan Oliveira Sanders, Cleverson G. Silva, Catherine Rigsby, Francisco W. Cruz, Gary S. Dwyer, Sherilyn C. Fritz, Paul A. Baker

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

During the Pleistocene, long-term trends in global climate were controlled by orbital cycles leading to high amplitude glacial-interglacial variability. The history of Amazonian vegetation during this period is largely unknown since no continuous record from the lowland basin extends significantly beyond the last glacial stage. Here we present a paleoenvironmental record spanning the last 1800 kyr based on palynological data, biome reconstructions, and biodiversity metrics from a marine sediment core that preserves a continuous archive of sediments from the Amazon River.

Tropical rainforests dominated the Amazonian lowlands during the last 1800 ka interchanging with surrounding warm-temperate rainforests and tropical seasonal …


Neotype Designation For Papilio Fulgerator Walch, 1775 (Hesperiidae: Eudaminae), Jing Zhang, Qian Cong, Gerardo Lamas, Nick V. Grishin Nov 2022

Neotype Designation For Papilio Fulgerator Walch, 1775 (Hesperiidae: Eudaminae), Jing Zhang, Qian Cong, Gerardo Lamas, Nick V. Grishin

The Taxonomic Report of the International Lepidoptera Survey

The discovery that a skipper butterfly Telegonus fulgerator (Walch, 1775), previously placed in the genus Astraptes Hübner, [1819], is a complex of many similar-looking species-level taxa with different COI barcodes, caterpillar foodplants, and body patterns, and subtle differences in adult phenotypes raised a question about which species is the original T. fulgerator. To answer this question, being unable to locate its holotype, we designate the neotype of Papilio fulgerator Walch, 1775, a female specimen from Suriname in the Zoological State Collection, Munich, Germany. This neotype will form the foundation for a comprehensive revision of the T. fulgerator complex based …


Genomics Reveals A New Genus And Species From A Single Female Specimen (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae: Hesperiinae: Hesperiini: Moncina), Ernst Brockmann, Jing Zhang, Qian Cong, Nick V. Grishin Oct 2022

Genomics Reveals A New Genus And Species From A Single Female Specimen (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae: Hesperiinae: Hesperiini: Moncina), Ernst Brockmann, Jing Zhang, Qian Cong, Nick V. Grishin

Insecta Mundi

New taxa in Hesperiidae (Lepidoptera: Papilionoidea) are traditionally proposed after inspection of male genitalia, which largely form the basis for Hesperiidae taxonomy. However, with genomic DNA se­quencing, even a single female specimen can be placed in a phylogenetic context of existing classification and taxonomically assigned with confidence. Genomic sequencing of an unusually patterned Hesperiidae female from San Martin, Peru, characterized by pearly spots outlining an inverted heart pattern on the rust-colored ventral hindwing, reveals that it represents an undescribed genus and species named here as Gemmia buechei Brockmann and Grishin, new genus and new species.

Neotropical regions are rich …


Taxonomic Discoveries Enabled By Genomic Analysis Of Butterflies, Jing Zhang, Qing Cong, Jinhui Shen, Leina Song, Riley J. Gott, Pierre Boyer, Crispin S. Guppy, Steve Kohler, Gerardo Lamas, Paul A. Opler, Nick V. Grishin Oct 2022

Taxonomic Discoveries Enabled By Genomic Analysis Of Butterflies, Jing Zhang, Qing Cong, Jinhui Shen, Leina Song, Riley J. Gott, Pierre Boyer, Crispin S. Guppy, Steve Kohler, Gerardo Lamas, Paul A. Opler, Nick V. Grishin

The Taxonomic Report of the International Lepidoptera Survey

The comparative genomics of butterflies yields additional insights into their phylogeny and classification that are compiled here. As a result, 3 genera, 5 subgenera, 5 species, and 3 subspecies are proposed as new, that is, in Hesperiidae: Antina Grishin, gen. n. (type species Antigonus minor O. Mielke, 1980), Pompe Grishin and Lamas, gen. n. (type species Lerema postpuncta Draudt, 1923), and Curva Grishin, gen. n. (type species Moeris hyagnis Godman, 1900); in Lycaenidae: Fussia Grishin, subgen. n. (type species Polyommatus standfussi Grum-Grshimailo, 1891) and Pava Grishin, subgen. n. (type species Thecla panava Westwood, 1852); in Hesperiidae: Monoca Grishin, subgen. n. …


Regenerative Agriculture Framework For Island Ecosystems Using São Miguel As A Case Study, Mya Hunter Oct 2022

Regenerative Agriculture Framework For Island Ecosystems Using São Miguel As A Case Study, Mya Hunter

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Context: Regenerative agriculture is a farming approach that uses soil health as the entry point to contribute to multiple objectives, such as improved nutrient cycling and climate regulation. Farmers can apply different practices to reach these objectives. The objectives and practices, however, are not equally relevant or applicable for farming systems on island ecosystems and the local context.

Objectives: The main objective of this paper, therefore, is to find out how solutions towards regenerative agriculture can be identified and evaluated as such that they result in meaningful advice for farmers on island ecosystems in order to mitigate the …


Using Airborne And Desis Imaging Spectroscopy To Map Plant Diversity Across The Largest Contiguous Tract Of Tallgrass Prairie On Earth, Hamed Gholizadeh, Adam P. Dixon, Kimberly H. Plan, Nicholas A. Mcmillan, Rober G. Hamilton, Samuel D. Fuhlendorf, Jeannine Cavender-Bares, John A. Gamon Sep 2022

Using Airborne And Desis Imaging Spectroscopy To Map Plant Diversity Across The Largest Contiguous Tract Of Tallgrass Prairie On Earth, Hamed Gholizadeh, Adam P. Dixon, Kimberly H. Plan, Nicholas A. Mcmillan, Rober G. Hamilton, Samuel D. Fuhlendorf, Jeannine Cavender-Bares, John A. Gamon

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Grassland ecosystems are under threat globally, primarily due to land-use and land-cover changes that have adversely affected their biodiversity. Given the negative ecological impacts of biodiversity loss in grasslands, there is an urgent need for developing an operational biodiversity monitoring system that functions in these ecosystems. In this paper, we assessed the capability of airborne and spaceborne imaging spectroscopy (also known as hyperspectral imaging) to capture plant α-diversity in a large naturally-assembled grassland while considering the impact of common management practices, specifically prescribed fire. We collected a robust insitu plant diversity data set, including species composition and percent cover from …


Pando's Pulse: Vital Signs Signal Need For Course Correction At World-Renowned Aspen Forest, Paul C. Rogers Sep 2022

Pando's Pulse: Vital Signs Signal Need For Course Correction At World-Renowned Aspen Forest, Paul C. Rogers

Aspen Bibliography

Upland aspen (Populus spp.) forests contribute significantly to biodiversity in their circumboreal role as keystone species. As aspen ecosystems flourish or diminish, myriad dependent species follow suit. The 43-hectare Pando aspen (Populus tremuloides Michx.) clone in Utah, USA, is thought to be the largest living organism on earth, but is faltering due to chronic herbivory. Long-term resilience in aspen communities, including Pando, rests on successful recruitment of vegetative suckers that are nutritiously desirable to browsing ungulates. Here, I evaluate aspen reproduction alongside numerous vital indicators of Pando's status in the first trend assessment of this embattled iconic forest. …


18s-Nemabase: Curated 18s Rrna Database Of Nematode Sequences, Kaitlin Gattoni, Eli M. S. Gendron, Rebeca Sandoval- Ruiz, Abigail Borgemeier, J. Parr Mcqueen, Rachel M. Shepherd, Dieter Slos, Tom Powers, Dorota L. Porazinska Aug 2022

18s-Nemabase: Curated 18s Rrna Database Of Nematode Sequences, Kaitlin Gattoni, Eli M. S. Gendron, Rebeca Sandoval- Ruiz, Abigail Borgemeier, J. Parr Mcqueen, Rachel M. Shepherd, Dieter Slos, Tom Powers, Dorota L. Porazinska

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

Nematodes are the most abundant and diverse animals on the planet but lack representation in biodiversity research. This presents a problem for studying nematode diversity, particularly when molecular tools (i.e., barcoding and metabarcoding) rely on well-populated and curated reference databases, which are absent for nematodes. To improve molecular identification and the assessment of nematode diversity, we created and curated an 18S rRNA database specific to nematodes (18S-NemaBase) using sequences sourced from the most recent publicly available 18S rRNA SILVA v138 database. As part of the curation process, taxonomic strings were standardized to contain a fixed number of taxonomic ranks relevant …


18s-Nemabase: Curated 18s Rrna Database Of Nematode Sequences, Kaitlin Gattoni, Eli M. S. Gendron, Rebeca Sandoval- Ruiz, Abigail Borgemeier, J. Parr Mcqueen, Rachel M. Shepherd, Dieter Slos, Tom Powers, Dorota L. Porazinska Aug 2022

18s-Nemabase: Curated 18s Rrna Database Of Nematode Sequences, Kaitlin Gattoni, Eli M. S. Gendron, Rebeca Sandoval- Ruiz, Abigail Borgemeier, J. Parr Mcqueen, Rachel M. Shepherd, Dieter Slos, Tom Powers, Dorota L. Porazinska

Department of Plant Pathology: Faculty Publications

Nematodes are the most abundant and diverse animals on the planet but lack representation in biodiversity research. This presents a problem for studying nematode diversity, particularly when molecular tools (i.e., barcoding and metabarcoding) rely on well-populated and curated reference databases, which are absent for nematodes. To improve molecular identification and the assessment of nematode diversity, we created and curated an 18S rRNA database specific to nematodes (18S-NemaBase) using sequences sourced from the most recent publicly available 18S rRNA SILVA v138 database. As part of the curation process, taxonomic strings were standardized to contain a fixed number of taxonomic ranks relevant …


Anti-Bat Ultrasound Production In Moths Is Globally And Phylogenetically Widespread, Jesse R. Barber, Brian C. Leavell, Krystie A. Miner, Brandt Quirk-Royal Jun 2022

Anti-Bat Ultrasound Production In Moths Is Globally And Phylogenetically Widespread, Jesse R. Barber, Brian C. Leavell, Krystie A. Miner, Brandt Quirk-Royal

Biology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Warning signals are well known in the visual system, but rare in other modalities. Some moths produce ultrasonic sounds to warn bats of noxious taste or to mimic unpalatable models. Here, we report results from a long-term study across the globe, assaying moth response to playback of bat echolocation. We tested 252 genera, spanning most families of large-bodied moths, and document anti-bat ultrasound production in 52 genera, with eight subfamily origins described. Based on acoustic analysis of ultrasonic emissions and palatability experiments with bats, it seems that acoustic warning and mimicry are the raison d'être for sound production in most …


Climate Change Reshuffles Northern Species Within Their Niches, Laura H. Antao, Benjamin Weigel, Giovanni Strona, Maria Hallfors, Elina Kaarlejarvi, Tad Dallas, Oystein H. Opedal, Janne Heliola, Heikki Henttonen, Otso Huitu, Erkki Korpimaki, Mikko Kuussaari, Aleksi Lehikoinen, Reima Leinonen, Andreas Lindén, Paivi Merila, Hannu Pietianinen, Juha Poyry, Maija Salemaa, Tiina Tonteri, Kristiina Vuorio, Otso Ovaskainen, Marjo Saastamoinen, Jarno Vanhatalo, Tomas Roslin, Anna-Liisa Laine Jun 2022

Climate Change Reshuffles Northern Species Within Their Niches, Laura H. Antao, Benjamin Weigel, Giovanni Strona, Maria Hallfors, Elina Kaarlejarvi, Tad Dallas, Oystein H. Opedal, Janne Heliola, Heikki Henttonen, Otso Huitu, Erkki Korpimaki, Mikko Kuussaari, Aleksi Lehikoinen, Reima Leinonen, Andreas Lindén, Paivi Merila, Hannu Pietianinen, Juha Poyry, Maija Salemaa, Tiina Tonteri, Kristiina Vuorio, Otso Ovaskainen, Marjo Saastamoinen, Jarno Vanhatalo, Tomas Roslin, Anna-Liisa Laine

Faculty Publications

Climate change is a pervasive threat to biodiversity. While range shifts are a known consequence of climate warming contributing to regional community change, less is known about how species’ positions shift within their climatic niches. Furthermore, whether the relative importance of different climatic variables prompting such shifts varies with changing climate remains unclear. Here we analysed four decades of data for 1,478 species of birds, mammals, butterflies, moths, plants and phytoplankton along a 1,200 km high latitudinal gradient. The relative importance of climatic drivers varied non-uniformly with progressing climate change. While species turnover among decades was limited, the relative position …


Can Financialization Save Nature? The Case Of Endangered Species, Diane-Laure Arjalies, Delphine Gibassier May 2022

Can Financialization Save Nature? The Case Of Endangered Species, Diane-Laure Arjalies, Delphine Gibassier

Business Publications

The current biodiversity loss is dramatic. Over the past 50 years, more than 68% of the mammals, birds, amphibians, reptiles, and fish on earth have disappeared, putting the planet's survival and its inhabitants – including human beings – at risk (WWF, 2020). Financialization, or the transformation of nature into financial assets, is increasingly proposed as a solution to the biodiversity crisis. Proponents of financialization believe that assigning a monetary value to nature will incentivize human beings to protect habitats and their species. This article offers a four-mechanism model of nature’s financialization, explaining why it is virtually impossible to financialize nature. …


Checking The Checkered Taxonomy Of Plötz's Checkered Skippers (Hesperiidae: Pyrgini), Jing Zhang, Qing Cong, John M. Burns, Nick V. Grishin May 2022

Checking The Checkered Taxonomy Of Plötz's Checkered Skippers (Hesperiidae: Pyrgini), Jing Zhang, Qing Cong, John M. Burns, Nick V. Grishin

The Taxonomic Report of the International Lepidoptera Survey

We present an analysis of the names proposed by Carl Plötz in 1884 for the New World species in the genus Pyrgus Hübner, [1819] facilitated by the genomic sequencing of extant primary type specimens comparatively with a larger sample of more recently collected specimens of these species and their relatives. The changes to nomenclature suggested here are only caused by the identity of primary type specimens as revealed by their phenotypes or though genomic sequencing. All neotypes are designated to stabilize nomenclature in agreement with the current usage of these names, which in unison agrees best with the information available …


Genomic Dna Sequencing Reveals Two New North American Species Of Staphylus (Hesperiidae: Pyrginae: Carcharodini), Jing Zhang May 2022

Genomic Dna Sequencing Reveals Two New North American Species Of Staphylus (Hesperiidae: Pyrginae: Carcharodini), Jing Zhang

The Taxonomic Report of the International Lepidoptera Survey

Two new skipper butterfly (Hesperiidae) species are described from the United States: Staphylus floridus Grishin, sp. n. (type locality in Florida, Volusia County) and Staphylus ecos Grishin, sp. n. (type locality in Texas, Brewster County). They are cryptic and hence escaped recognition. They differ from their sister species by the relative size and morphology of genitalia and by genotype—including and beyond the COI barcode—thus, suggesting genetic isolation that argues for their species-level status. A lectotype is designated for Helias ascalaphus Staudinger, 1876. Staphylus opites (Godman & Salvin, 1896), stat. rest. is a species-level taxon and not a synonym of Staphylus …


Tree Species Diversity Increases With Conspecific Negative Density Dependence Across An Elevation Gradient, Joseph A. Lamanna, F. Andrew Jones, Davod M. Bell, Robert J. Pabst, David C. Shaw May 2022

Tree Species Diversity Increases With Conspecific Negative Density Dependence Across An Elevation Gradient, Joseph A. Lamanna, F. Andrew Jones, Davod M. Bell, Robert J. Pabst, David C. Shaw

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

Elevational and latitudinal gradients in species diversity may be mediated by biotic interactions that cause density-dependent effects of conspecifics on survival or growth to differ from effects of heterospecifics (i.e. conspecific density dependence), but limited evidence exists to support this. We tested the hypothesis that conspecific density dependence varies with elevation using over 40 years of data on tree survival and growth from 23 old-growth temperate forest stands across a 1,000-m elevation gradient. We found that conspecific-density-dependent effects on survival of small-to-intermediate-sized focal trees were negative in lower elevation, higher diversity forest stands typically characterised by warmer temperatures and greater …


Conservation And Variation In Agricultural Landscapes: A Survey Of Insect Populations Across Naranjilla Cultivation Methods In The Eastern Andean Cloud Forest, Ian Zakelj Apr 2022

Conservation And Variation In Agricultural Landscapes: A Survey Of Insect Populations Across Naranjilla Cultivation Methods In The Eastern Andean Cloud Forest, Ian Zakelj

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This study compared insect biodiversity among five sites in agricultural landscapes and natural forest in the El Placer community in the valley of the Rio Pastaza in the eastern Andean cloud forest. The area is of vital importance to conservation, as it falls in the ecological corridor between the Sangay and Llanganates national parks. The primary crop produced by the residents of El Placer is naranjilla, and it is cultivated in a variety of manners, mostly with intensive chemical use. The goal of the study was to find out which types of practices were the least harmful to the insect …


Ccsi’S Consolidated Feedback On The Wba Draft Nature Benchmark Methodology, Columbia Center On Sustainable Investment Mar 2022

Ccsi’S Consolidated Feedback On The Wba Draft Nature Benchmark Methodology, Columbia Center On Sustainable Investment

Columbia Center on Sustainable Investment Staff Publications

Private sector actors are paying more attention to their negative impacts on climate, nature, and biodiversity. CCSI engages with private sector initiatives, frameworks, and benchmarks in this area to ensure the core corporate responsibility to respect human rights is prioritized and addressed.

As part of this work, in March and April 2022, CCSI submitted comments to and engaged with the World Benchmarking Alliance on their Draft Methodology for their Nature and Biodiversity Benchmark. The World Benchmarking Alliance is a leading multi-stakeholder organization which creates benchmarks to publicly assess and rank the world's most influential companies on their contributions to …


Adapting To A 4°C World, Karrigan Börk, Karen Bradshaw, Cinnamon P. Carlarne, Robin Kundis Craig, Sarah Fox, Joshua Ulan Galperin, Shi-Ling Hsu, Katrina F. Kuh, Kevin Lynch, Michele Okoh, Jessica Owley, Melissa Powers, Shannon Roesler, J.B. Ruhl, James Salzman, David Takacs, Clifford J. Villa Mar 2022

Adapting To A 4°C World, Karrigan Börk, Karen Bradshaw, Cinnamon P. Carlarne, Robin Kundis Craig, Sarah Fox, Joshua Ulan Galperin, Shi-Ling Hsu, Katrina F. Kuh, Kevin Lynch, Michele Okoh, Jessica Owley, Melissa Powers, Shannon Roesler, J.B. Ruhl, James Salzman, David Takacs, Clifford J. Villa

Elisabeth Haub School of Law Faculty Publications

The Paris Agreement's goal to hold warming to 1.5°-2°C above pre-industrial levels now appears unrealistic. Profs. Robin Kundis Craig and J.B. Ruhl have recently argued that because a 4°C world may be likely, we must recognize the disruptive consequences of such a world and respond by reimagining governance structures to meet the challenges of adapting to it. In this latest in a biannual series of essays, they and other members of the Environmental Law Collaborative explore what 4°C might mean for a variety of current legal doctrines, planning policies, governance structures, and institutions.


Taxonomic Changes Suggested By The Genomic Analysis Of Hesperiidae (Lepidoptera), Jing Zhang, Qian Cong, Jinhui Shen, Nick V. Grishin Feb 2022

Taxonomic Changes Suggested By The Genomic Analysis Of Hesperiidae (Lepidoptera), Jing Zhang, Qian Cong, Jinhui Shen, Nick V. Grishin

Insecta Mundi

Our expanded efforts in genomic sequencing to cover additional skipper butterfly (Lepidoptera: Hesperiidae) species and populations, including primary type specimens, call for taxonomic changes to re­store monophyly and correct misidentifications by moving taxa between genera and proposing new names. Reconciliation between phenotypic characters and genomic trees suggests three new tribes, two new sub­tribes, 23 new genera, 17 new subgenera and 10 new species that are proposed here: Psolosini Grishin, new tribe (type genus Psolos Staudinger, 1889), Ismini Grishin, new tribe (type genus Isma Distant, 1886), Eetio­nini Grishin, new tribe (type genus Eetion de Nicéville, 1895), Orphina Grishin, new subtribe (type …


A Third Species Of Haroldiellus Gordon And Skelley, 2007 From Mexico And Central America (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Aphodiinae: Aphodiini), Paul E. Skelley, Oliver Keller Feb 2022

A Third Species Of Haroldiellus Gordon And Skelley, 2007 From Mexico And Central America (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Aphodiinae: Aphodiini), Paul E. Skelley, Oliver Keller

Insecta Mundi

Haroldiellus woodruffi Skelley and Keller, new species, (Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Aphodiinae: Aphodiini), from Costa Rica, Guatemala, Mexico, and Panama is described. An updated key for the genus, updated distributions, and diagnoses for the other two species are provided.

Se describe la nueva especie Haroldiellus woodruffi Skelley y Keller (Coleoptera: Sacarabaeidae: Aphodiinae: Aphodiinae) de Costa Rica, Guatemala, México y Panamá. Se provee una clave, distribuciones y diagnosis actualizadas para las otras dos especies.

Worldwide, the scarabaeid subfamily Aphodiinae Leach, 1815 (when including Aegialiinae Laporte, 1840) con­sists of about 3200 species in 14 tribes and around 280 genera (Nikolajev 2008; Skelley 2008; …


A Second Species Of The Genus Erebaces Pascoe, 1871 (Curculionidae: Molytinae: Cryptorhynchini) From The Philippines, Robert S. Anderson Feb 2022

A Second Species Of The Genus Erebaces Pascoe, 1871 (Curculionidae: Molytinae: Cryptorhynchini) From The Philippines, Robert S. Anderson

Insecta Mundi

Erebaces woodruffi Anderson, new species (Curculionidae: Molytinae: Cryptorhynchini), from Palawan (Philippines) is described and illustrated. This is the second species of the genus Erebaces Pascoe described from the Philippines. It can be separated from Erebaces kidapawanus Pancini by the pair of divergent dorsal pale-scaled lines on the pronotum extended onto the elytra and by the form of the elytral tubercles.

The genus Erebaces Pascoe, 1871 was recently recorded in the Philippines based on the presence of E. kidapawanus Pancini, 2021 from Mindanao. The genus is easily recognized by the eyes finely faceted, protruding (toothed) elytral humeri, the deep rostral canal …


Phylogenomic Discordance Suggests Polytomies Along The Backbone Of The Large Genus Solanum, Edeline Gagnon, Rebeccca Hilgenhof, Andrés Orejuela, Angela J. Mcdonnell, Gaurav Sablok, Xavier Aubriot, Leandro Giacomin, Yuri Gouvêa, Thamyris Bragionis, João Renato Stehmann, Lynn Bohs, Steven Dodsworth, Christopher T. Martine, Péter Poczai, Sandra Knapp, Tiina Särkinen Feb 2022

Phylogenomic Discordance Suggests Polytomies Along The Backbone Of The Large Genus Solanum, Edeline Gagnon, Rebeccca Hilgenhof, Andrés Orejuela, Angela J. Mcdonnell, Gaurav Sablok, Xavier Aubriot, Leandro Giacomin, Yuri Gouvêa, Thamyris Bragionis, João Renato Stehmann, Lynn Bohs, Steven Dodsworth, Christopher T. Martine, Péter Poczai, Sandra Knapp, Tiina Särkinen

Faculty Journal Articles

Premise of the study

Evolutionary studies require solid phylogenetic frameworks, but increased volumes of phylogenomic data have revealed incongruent topologies among gene trees in many organisms both between and within genomes. Some of these incongruences indicate polytomies that may remain impossible to resolve. Here we investigate the degree of gene-tree discordance in Solanum, one of the largest flowering plant genera that includes the cultivated potato, tomato, and eggplant, as well as 24 minor crop plants.

Methods

A densely sampled species-level phylogeny of Solanum is built using unpublished and publicly available Sanger sequences comprising 60% of all accepted species (742 spp.) …


Fact Sheet - Human Settlements: Climate Change Impacts And Risks, Winston T. L. Chow, Richard Dawson, Bruce Glavovic, Marjolijn Haasnoot, Mark Pelling, William Solecki Feb 2022

Fact Sheet - Human Settlements: Climate Change Impacts And Risks, Winston T. L. Chow, Richard Dawson, Bruce Glavovic, Marjolijn Haasnoot, Mark Pelling, William Solecki

Research Collection College of Integrative Studies

This regional factsheet on cities and human settlements gives a snapshot of the key findings of the Sixth Assessment Report: Climate Change 2022 - Impacts. Adaptation and Vulnerability, distilled from the relevant Chapters and Cross-Chapter Papers, the Technical Summary and the Global to Regional Atlas.


Strategic Protection Of Landslide Vulnerable Mountains For Biodiversity Conservation Under Land-Cover And Climate Change Impacts, Binbin V. Li, Clinton N. Jenkins, Weihua Xu Jan 2022

Strategic Protection Of Landslide Vulnerable Mountains For Biodiversity Conservation Under Land-Cover And Climate Change Impacts, Binbin V. Li, Clinton N. Jenkins, Weihua Xu

Department of Earth and Environment

Natural disasters impose huge uncertainty and loss to human lives and economic activities. Landslides are one disaster that has become more prevalent because of anthropogenic disturbances, such as land-cover changes, land degradation, and expansion of infrastructure. These are further exacerbated by more extreme precipitation due to climate change, which is predicted to trigger more landslides and threaten sustainable development in vulnerable regions. Although biodiversity conservation and development are often regarded as having a trade-off relationship, here we present a global analysis of the area with co-benefits, where conservation through expanding protection and reducing deforestation can not only benefit biodiversity but …


The Effects Of Floodplain Restoration On Biodiversity, Ireland Keeney, Jessica Gutekunst Jan 2022

The Effects Of Floodplain Restoration On Biodiversity, Ireland Keeney, Jessica Gutekunst

Summer Scholarship, Creative Arts and Research Projects (SCARP)

During the colonial era, numerous mills and dams were built in Pennsylvania. This and other intensive land uses led to sediment eroding from upstream and burying wetlands. The accumulated sediment is known as legacy sediment1.

There has been a significant loss of wetlands throughout the centuries, with many of them in the Piedmont region being buried under thick layers of legacy sediment as shown in Figure 1 below2.

The removal of legacy sediment is a new technique used to restore wetlands, mainly with the intent being to improve water quality3. However, a restored wetland as shown by Figure 1 may …


People-Powered Research And Experiential Learning: Unravelling Hidden Biodiversity, Melanie Pivarski, Matt Von Konrat, Tom Campbell, Numerous Other Co-Authors Jan 2022

People-Powered Research And Experiential Learning: Unravelling Hidden Biodiversity, Melanie Pivarski, Matt Von Konrat, Tom Campbell, Numerous Other Co-Authors

Biology Faculty Publications

Globally, thousands of institutions house nearly three billion scientific collections offering unparallelled resources that contribute to both science and society. For herbaria alone - facilities housing dried plant collections - there are over 3,000 herbaria worldwide with an estimated 350 million specimens that have been collected over the past four centuries. Digitisation has greatly enhanced the use of herbarium data in scientific research, impacting diverse research areas, including biodiversity informatics, global climate change, analyses using next-generation sequencing technologies and many others. Despite the entrance of herbaria into a new era with enhanced scientific, educational and societal relevance, museum specimens remain …


Towards Mapping Biodiversity From Above: Can Fusing Lidar And Hyperspectral Remote Sensing Predict Taxonomic, Functional, And Phylogenetic Tree Diversity In Temperate Forests?, Aaron G. Kamoske, Kyla M. Dahlin, Quentin D. Read, Sydne Record, Scott C. Stark, Shawn P. Serbin, Phoebe L. Zarnetske Jan 2022

Towards Mapping Biodiversity From Above: Can Fusing Lidar And Hyperspectral Remote Sensing Predict Taxonomic, Functional, And Phylogenetic Tree Diversity In Temperate Forests?, Aaron G. Kamoske, Kyla M. Dahlin, Quentin D. Read, Sydne Record, Scott C. Stark, Shawn P. Serbin, Phoebe L. Zarnetske

Biology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Aim: Rapid global change is impacting the diversity of tree species and essential ecosystem functions and services of forests. It is therefore critical to understand and predict how the diversity of tree species is spatially distributed within and among forest biomes. Satellite remote sensing platforms have been used for decades to map forest structure and function but are limited in their capacity to monitor change by their relatively coarse spatial resolution and the complexity of scales at which different dimensions of biodiversity are observed in the field. Recently, airborne remote sensing platforms making use of passive high spectral resolution (i.e., …


Standardized Neon Organismal Data For Biodiversity Research, Daijiang Li, Sydne Record, Eric R. Sokol, Matthew E. Bitters, Melissa Y. Chen, Y. Anny Chung, Matthew R. Helmus, Ruvi Jaimes, Lara Jansen, Marta A. Jarzyna, Michael G. Just, Jalene M. Lamontagne, Brett A. Melbourne, Wynne Moss, Kari E. A. Norman, Stephanie M. Parker, Natalie Robinson, Bijan Seyednasrollah, Colin Smith, Sarah Spaulding, Thilina D. Surasinghe, Sarah K. Thomsen, Phoebe L. Zarnetske Jan 2022

Standardized Neon Organismal Data For Biodiversity Research, Daijiang Li, Sydne Record, Eric R. Sokol, Matthew E. Bitters, Melissa Y. Chen, Y. Anny Chung, Matthew R. Helmus, Ruvi Jaimes, Lara Jansen, Marta A. Jarzyna, Michael G. Just, Jalene M. Lamontagne, Brett A. Melbourne, Wynne Moss, Kari E. A. Norman, Stephanie M. Parker, Natalie Robinson, Bijan Seyednasrollah, Colin Smith, Sarah Spaulding, Thilina D. Surasinghe, Sarah K. Thomsen, Phoebe L. Zarnetske

Biology Faculty Research and Scholarship

Understanding patterns and drivers of species distribution and abundance, and thus biodiversity, is a core goal of ecology. Despite advances in recent decades, research into these patterns and processes is currently limited by a lack of standardized, high-quality, empirical data that span large spatial scales and long time periods. The NEON fills this gap by providing freely available observational data that are generated during robust and consistent organismal sampling of several sentinel taxonomic groups within 81 sites distributed across the United States and will be collected for at least 30 years. The breadth and scope of these data provide a …