Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Life Sciences Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Animal Sciences

PDF

Conference

Zoology

Articles 1 - 6 of 6

Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Betta Fish Reactions To Color: A Qualitative And Quantitative Analysis, Jessica Barrios, Jackie Arnott Apr 2019

Betta Fish Reactions To Color: A Qualitative And Quantitative Analysis, Jessica Barrios, Jackie Arnott

Student Symposium

We will be studying the connections between mating, aggression, and the coloration of male betta fish and how they react to the coloration of other betta fish. We chose this topic because coloration is genetically linked to aggression in male betta fish, and because aggressive behaviors are very similar to mating behaviors.


Characterization Of The Yeast Gene Ydl218w: A Role In Cell Wall Biosynthesis And Maintenance?, Kaden Hubly Apr 2019

Characterization Of The Yeast Gene Ydl218w: A Role In Cell Wall Biosynthesis And Maintenance?, Kaden Hubly

Student Symposium

The budding yeast, Saccharomyces cerevisiae, is a common model organism used to study eukaryotic cell biology. S. cerevisiae is a fungus with a cell wall which makes it an excellent model for the study of antifungal agents. There are close to 1,000 genes of unknown function (GUFs) in S. cerevisiae. One of these is the gene YDL218W on which our research is focused. While little is known about this gene, evidence suggests that it may be involved in cell wall synthesis or maintenance. For example, YDL218W is induced by a transcription factor known to regulate genes involved in maintaining cell …


Advancing Natural History Research Using The Collections Of The Owu Brant Museum Of Zoology, Josh Pletcher, Kyle Davis Apr 2019

Advancing Natural History Research Using The Collections Of The Owu Brant Museum Of Zoology, Josh Pletcher, Kyle Davis

Student Symposium

Natural history collections are important repositories of biological and geological material. Biological collections provide raw data to interpret the ecology, anatomy, and evolution of living and fossil organisms. OWU’s zoological collections play an important role in undergraduate research and educating future preparators. Two projects are currently in progress: Kyle Davis’ work on size variation in house sparrows and Josh Pletcher’s work digitizing OWU’s collection of Ward’s fossil casts. We travelled to museums in New York and Connecticut to further pursue our research. Kyle Davis’ research focuses on Bergmann’s Rule, which states that as temperature decreases, body size increases, decreasing surface …


Studying The Social Behavior And Preferences Of Polar Bears At The Columbus Zoo And Aquarium, Molly Seeberger Apr 2019

Studying The Social Behavior And Preferences Of Polar Bears At The Columbus Zoo And Aquarium, Molly Seeberger

Student Symposium

Polar bears (Ursus maritimus) are relatively solitary animals unless it is breeding season. At the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium, the polar bears participate in the Species Survival Plan where breeding for conservation efforts is encouraged. Lee, an 19-year-old male, came to the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium in the Fall of 2018 in hopes of breeding with 12-year-old twin females Aurora and Anana. Because Lee’s previous experience was only living with one female, I wanted to observe whether he would prefer a particular female because he now had two females to choose from. Not only did I look for preference, but …


Laboratory Mice Burrowing Responses To Predator Calls, Katie Vonderembse, Brianna Graber, Molly Seeberger Apr 2019

Laboratory Mice Burrowing Responses To Predator Calls, Katie Vonderembse, Brianna Graber, Molly Seeberger

Student Symposium

The avoidance of predation is an essential trait in mice and depends on the ability of the mouse to recognize its predators. It is predicted that the calls of predators act as stimuli which signal the presence of potential danger. Laboratory mice have been shown to respond with defensive behaviors, such as burrowing, when exposed to the the calls of predators. To test how mice respond to different predator calls, we will play the sounds of three owls, Eastern Screech Owl,Tawny Owl, and American Barn Owl, and look at burrowing behaviors. Human voices reading a book will be used as …


Investigating Crayfish (Orconectes Rusticus) Aggression And How It Varies With Resource Availability, Allie Smith, Rebecca Lipster Apr 2019

Investigating Crayfish (Orconectes Rusticus) Aggression And How It Varies With Resource Availability, Allie Smith, Rebecca Lipster

Student Symposium

Animals that express agonistic behavior toward one another are prone to recognizing hierarchical status among individuals. Recognizing status has proven to be evolutionarily advantageous for crayfish (Orconectes rusticus) because it allows dominant individuals to maximize resources and permits subordinate individuals to steer clear of potentially costly battles. More specifically, two crayfish experiencing aggression can generally determine who the dominant and subordinate individuals are in a fight. A higher social status within a social hierarchy can allow for increased access to differing resources, such as food, mates, and shelter. In this experiment, we want to see if limiting resources will affect …