Life Sciences Commons^™

Landscape Effects On Brown-Headed Cowbird (Molothrus Ater) Abundances In Crp Patches, Chase Wickard

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Many grassland bird species have experienced significant population declines and are the focus of conservation efforts. Recovery of these species is slowed, in part, due to nest parasitism by the Brown-headed Cowbird (Molothrus ater). Cowbirds are nest parasites that lay their eggs in the nests of other bird species and rely on the host species parents to raise their offspring. This in turn can reduce the reproductive success of hosts. This study attempts to determine whether landscape variables surrounding CRP patches may be driving cowbird densities.

Natural History And Diet Of A Population Of Prairie Rattlesnakes (Crotalus Viridis) In Kansas, Colleen Rothe-Groleau

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

The primary goal of this study was to gather enough data to create a life history table for this population that can be used in future studies on this and similar species, such as timber rattlesnakes. A second goal was to compile diet data for comparison to datasets within the primary literature from populations of C. viridis and other crotalid species throughout the United States and Canada.

Using morphological characteristics, I attempted to determine whether there are methods that are less invasive for determining sex of C. viridis in the field than those currently in use. Snout-vent length (SVL) and …

Differences In Behavioral Responses To Stress In Zebrafish: Exploring Underlying Neural Mechanisms, Jacalyn B. Russ

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Two alternative “stress coping styles” are documented across a wide range of taxa: proactive and reactive. While behavior differences can be observed between coping styles, brain regions potentially mediating these differences have not been studied extensively. Understanding differences in how the brain processes information between the coping styles can lead to insights on how these responses might be controlled. To assess the neural mechanisms underlying alternative stress coping styles, I utilized Danio rerio (zebrafish) and the Novel Tank Diving Test (NTDT). I hypothesize (i) that proactive fish will spend less time in the lower portion of the NTDT and spend …

Microflora In The Cheek Pouches Of Ord's Kangaroo Rat (Dipodomys Ordii) From The Nebraska Sandhills, Devin M. Christensen

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

The microflora living within the Ord’s kangaroo rat (Dipodymis ordii) cheek pouches has never been extensively studied before. Kangaroo rats use their cheek pouches to transport seeds and grasses in their mouths that they later store. It is predicted that the cheek pouches harbor fungal and bacterial growth that could be either helpful or harmful to the kangaroo rat and its environment. 8 kangaroo rats were humanely captured using Sherman live traps in the Nebraska Sandhills; their cheek pouches were swabbed, and the microorganisms obtained were grown on agar plates and in liquid media until an adequate amount …

Functional Genetics Of Mind-Meld In Drosophila Melanogaster, Candi R. Senior-Remsa

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Immunohistochemistry (IHC) is a useful research tool used to localize specific antigens in tissue sections with labeled antibodies based on antigen-antibody interactions. To obtain a clearer understanding of the cellular and subcellular localization of the Mind-Meld (MMD) protein during the developing Drosophila melanogaster embryo double indirect immunofluorescence was used to colocalize MMD with other proteins found in the fruit fly. An affinity-purified antibody raised in rabbit identifying all MMD isoforms was used with the fluorophore-labeled secondary antibody Alexa Fluor 594 specific to rabbit IgG. Well-characterized murine monoclonal antibodies with known subcellular localization and function in Drosophila: Fascicilin II (FASII), Short …

Species Diversity And Relative Abundance Of Reptiles And Amphibians At Glacier Creek Preserve, Cori L. Borgheiinck

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Glacier Creek Preserve, located in Bennington, Nebraska, is dedicated to restoring land to native prairie. Restoration at Glacier Creek Preserve began in 1970. Over the years, the preserve has acquired more land, as well as acquiring more habitat diversity. This research is the first to look at the community dynamics of herpetofauna in the preserve. The sampling areas were determined by choosing seven random sites to represent the following habitats, (1) prairie, (2) non-prairie, (3) prairie burned in 2014, and (4) prairie burned in 2016.

Data sampling occurred from April 2016 to October 2016 and from February 2017 to March …

Taxonomic Placement Of The Nidulariaceae Of Nebraska And Iowa Based On Molecular And Morphological Data, Goodmond H. Danielsen Iv

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Proper taxonomic and molecular study is necessary to better organize closely related species that may not only be used for human needs, but also in the quest for knowledge of how the world around us works. Though important, the taxonomic placement of Nebraskan and Iowan bird’s nest fungi (Nidulariaceae) is not well documented. Here, phylogenetic analysis is used to place the Nidulariaceae of Nebraska and Iowa in the tree of life using molecular and morphological techniques. Based on these results and results of further work done on these specimens, it will be possible to better place the Nidulariaceae of Nebraska …

Small Scale Heterogeneity In Vegetation Structure In A Patch-Burn-Grazing Landscape, Eric G. Behrens

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Disturbances are drivers of spatial change in the plant communities of the tallgrass prairie ecosystem. Fire and large herbivore grazing are prevalent disturbances that maintain the vegetation structure and create spatial heterogeneity in vegetation at various scales. The fire-grazing disturbance interaction occurs when areas that have been recently burned are followed by intense grazing due to the high quality of forage regrowth. This interaction has been managed in tallgrass prairies in a homogenous method using uniform burning and grazing and a heterogeneous method using patch-burn-grazing (PBG). Vegetation heterogeneity at a large scale has been studied in PBG and uniformly managed …

Establishment Of Milkweed Seeds Under Different Conditions, Marvin E. Sibrian

UNO Student Research and Creative Activity Fair

Milkweed is an important food source for many insects and the only food source for monarch caterpillars. Unfortunately, the abundance of milkweed plants has been decreasing over the years due to Roundup Ready® crops and increased herbicide use in agriculture, as well as milkweed habitats being plowed under for increased corn acreage. In hopes of restoring the monarch population, conservation organizations are joining forces to grow as much milkweed as they can and to increase the number of North American milkweed individuals by one billion. However, it is unclear how many seeds must be sown to add one billion milkweed …