Life Sciences Commons^™

Swimming Mechanisms Of Temperate Forest Ants, Noah D. Gripshover, Evan M. Gora, Stephen P. Yanoviak

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Swimming Mechanisms of Temperate Forest Ants (Camponotus pennsylvanicus and Formica subsericea)

Noah D. Gripshover, Evan M. Gora, and Stephen P. Yanoviak

University of Louisville

Abstract

Environmental challenges shape the evolution of animal behavior and morphology. For wingless terrestrial invertebrates like ants, pools of water on the forest floor are particularly dangerous. Here we show that ants can overcome this obstacle using a modified gait to transverse the water surface. We compared the locomotor morphology and swimming performance of two arboreal ant species that are common in Kentucky (Camponotus pennsylvanicus and Formica subsericea). We defined performance as speed …

Kentucky Lake: An Opportunity For Long Term Monitoring Of Fish Communities, Bradley Hartman

Scholars Week

Global aquatic ecosystems are impacted by a variety of mechanisms including habitat destruction, fish overharvest, and the introduction of invasive species. Long term monitoring of an ecosystem’s fish community, along with abiotic and biotic factors that influence the fish community, is crucial in establishing effective management strategies. Currently, numerous monitoring programs exist across the United States. However, a long term monitoring program of non-game and non-commercial fish community dynamics has not been established within Kentucky Lake in Western Kentucky. Preliminary sampling of the Kentucky Lake fish community was performed using boat electroshocking and surface trawling. Four embayments within Kentucky Lake …

Effects Of Stream Degradation On Ecosystem Function Are Mediated By Local Microbial And Macroinvertebrate Leaf Litter Processing, Carla Rothenbuecher

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

Riparian areas are fundamental to aquatic ecosystems by regulating temperature and light regimes, and providing allochthonous subsidies critical to the survival of aquatic and terrestrial species. On a global scale, increased rates of anthropogenic disturbance from agricultural activities and urbanization have caused the degradation of aquatic habitats. As a result, billions of dollars have been spent on stream restoration projects to protect aquatic resources; however, fundamental ecosystem processes like litter decomposition are rarely addressed. We conducted a litterbag experiment in a degraded high desert stream proposed for large-scale restoration to test the effects of reach location, canopy cover, and temperature …