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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Assessing The Influence Of Socials Calls On Bat Mist-Netting Success In North America, Karly A. Rushmore, Laura E. D'Acunto, Cheyenne L. Gerdes, Patrick A. Zollner, Joy M. O'Keefe Aug 2017

Assessing The Influence Of Socials Calls On Bat Mist-Netting Success In North America, Karly A. Rushmore, Laura E. D'Acunto, Cheyenne L. Gerdes, Patrick A. Zollner, Joy M. O'Keefe

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Since the introduction of the fungal disease White-Nose Syndrome in 2006, millions of North American bats have perished. For many species, the disease has caused over a 90 percent decline in abundance. With populations fluctuating as the pathogen spreads, biologists require improved methods of estimating bat demographics and abundance. Previous research indicates that mist netting success may be improved with the use of acoustic lures at mist-netting locations. Our research investigates which type of social calls improve the capture rates of North American bats, including the big brown bat (Eptesicus fuscus). Social call types used include antagonistic buzzes, distress calls, …


Acoustic Signatures Of Habitat Types In The Miombo Woodlands Of Western Tanzania, Sheryl Vanessa Amorocho, Dante Francomano, Kristen M. Bellisario, Ben Gottesman, Bryan C. Pijanowski Aug 2017

Acoustic Signatures Of Habitat Types In The Miombo Woodlands Of Western Tanzania, Sheryl Vanessa Amorocho, Dante Francomano, Kristen M. Bellisario, Ben Gottesman, Bryan C. Pijanowski

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

The Miombo Woodlands of Tanzania comprise several habitat types that are home to a great number of flora and fauna. Understanding their responses to increasing human disturbance is important for conservation, especially in places where people depend so directly on their local ecosystem services to survive. Soundscapes are a powerful approach to study complex biomes undergoing change. The sounds emitted by soniferous fauna characterize the acoustic profile of the landscapes they inhabit such that habitats with the highest acoustic abundance are considered as the most diverse and possibly more ecologically resilient. However, acoustic variability within similar habitat types may pose …


Ecological Responses Of Midwestern Snakes To Prescribed Fire, Zachary T. Truelock, Chelsea E. Clyde-Brockway, Elizabeth A. Flaherty Aug 2017

Ecological Responses Of Midwestern Snakes To Prescribed Fire, Zachary T. Truelock, Chelsea E. Clyde-Brockway, Elizabeth A. Flaherty

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Prescribed burning is a commonly used land management tool to reduce the risk of hazardous wildfires and improve wildlife habitat, especially for grassland ecosystems. However, prescribed fire has widely varying effects on differing wildlife taxa. The effects of prescribed fire on herpetofaunal biodiversity have been examined, but the responses of a common and wide-ranging species, the common garter snake (Thamnophis sirtalis), to fire and subsequent effects on its ecology have not been closely studied. The primary goal of this research was to evaluate differing resource use or movement patterns of common garter snakes in burned and unburned habitats. …


A Model Of The Use Of Evolutionary Trees (Muet) To Inform K-14 Biology Education, Yi Kong, Ankita Thawani, Trevor R. Anderson, Nancy Pelaez Feb 2017

A Model Of The Use Of Evolutionary Trees (Muet) To Inform K-14 Biology Education, Yi Kong, Ankita Thawani, Trevor R. Anderson, Nancy Pelaez

PIBERG Publications

Evolutionary trees are powerful tools used in modern biological research, and also commonly used in textbooks and classroom instruction. Studies have shown that K-14 students have difficulties interpreting evolutionary trees. To improve student learning about this topic, it is essential to teach them how to understand and use trees like professional biologists. Unfortunately, few currently used teaching frameworks for evolution instruction are designed for this purpose. In this study we developed the Model of the Use of Evolutionary Trees (MUET), a conceptual model that characterizes how evolutionary trees were used by professional biologists as represented in their research publications. The …