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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. …


The Role Of Habitat Shaping Motion Detection In Two Songbirds, Elena A. Ritschard, Luke P. Tyrrell, Esteban Fernández-Juricic Aug 2016

The Role Of Habitat Shaping Motion Detection In Two Songbirds, Elena A. Ritschard, Luke P. Tyrrell, Esteban Fernández-Juricic

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Double cones of birds are photoreceptors associated with motion perception, and perceiving motion is highly important to detect predators. Predation risks varies between habitats and may impose selective pressures that could affect organisms’ traits. There is evidence that birds show interspecific variations in visual system properties, such as the photoreceptor densities (single and double cones) and distribution across the retina. However, little is known about the relationship between the distribution of double cones and predator scanning strategies in birds living in different habitats. The goal of this study was to compare double cones distributions of birds that live in open …


Captive Breeding Protocols And Their Impact On Genetic Diversity In White-Footed Mice (Peromyscus Leucopus): Implications For Threatened And Endangered Species, Maureen C. Lamb, Janna R. Willoughby, J. Andrew Dewoody Aug 2015

Captive Breeding Protocols And Their Impact On Genetic Diversity In White-Footed Mice (Peromyscus Leucopus): Implications For Threatened And Endangered Species, Maureen C. Lamb, Janna R. Willoughby, J. Andrew Dewoody

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Captive breeding protocols used in zoos often are aimed at increasing population sizes and retaining genetic diversity of endangered species. However, captive breeding causes genetic adaptation to captivity that can lead to an overall decrease in genetic diversity and reduce chances of a successful reintroduction to the wild. In this study, we assess how 3 different breeding protocols—random mating, preferential breeding of individuals with the lowest mean kinship scores, and selection for docility—affect the variability of mitochondrial DNA in white-footed mice (Peromyscus leucopus). We used mice that were captured from the wild but were mated for up to …


Precipitation Variability And Nitrogen Deposition Alter Root Distribution In A Tallgrass Prairie, Emmalyn P. Terracciano, Michael Schuster, Jeffrey Dukes Aug 2014

Precipitation Variability And Nitrogen Deposition Alter Root Distribution In A Tallgrass Prairie, Emmalyn P. Terracciano, Michael Schuster, Jeffrey Dukes

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Climate change and increases in nitrogen deposition impact ecosystems globally. Projected atmospheric warming allows rain to fall in larger events with longer dry periods in between, increasing rainfall variability in many regions. Concurrently, the combustion of fossil fuels and the heavy use of nitrogen fertilizers continue to increase the availability of nitrogen globally. However, not much is known about how these global change factors, increased rainfall variability and nitrogen deposition, interact with each other to affect ecosystem functions, particularly belowground where root production contributes to soil carbon pools- an important component in regulating climate. In order to study these factors, …


Surveys Of Southern Flying Squirrel Activity Following Timber Harvest In Southern Indiana, Joseph W. Eisinger, Elizabeth A. Flaherty, Stephanie E. Trapp Aug 2014

Surveys Of Southern Flying Squirrel Activity Following Timber Harvest In Southern Indiana, Joseph W. Eisinger, Elizabeth A. Flaherty, Stephanie E. Trapp

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Southern flying squirrels (Glaucomys volans) are gliding small mammals that are ecologically important seed dispersers and prey species across their wide range, which extends from southern Canada to Central America. Because of their reliance on forest structure for efficient movement and on forest composition for hard mast production to provide winter food items, habitat use by G. volans may be impacted by timber harvest. Responses of G. volans to timber harvests remains understudied throughout their range, and studies are especially lacking within the Central Hardwoods Region that includes Indiana. Our study in the Hardwood Ecosystem Experiment (HEE) in southern Indiana …


Interaction Between Insecticide Exposure And Trematode Infection Across Four Wood Frog Populations, Michael J. Hiatt, Jessica Hua Dr., Vanessa Wuerthner, Jason Hoverman Dr. Aug 2014

Interaction Between Insecticide Exposure And Trematode Infection Across Four Wood Frog Populations, Michael J. Hiatt, Jessica Hua Dr., Vanessa Wuerthner, Jason Hoverman Dr.

The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium

Amphibian populations are declining worldwide due to a number of stressors including pesticides and parasites. Conservation of these animals can be complicated because populations can differ dramatically in response to the same stressor. When consistently exposed to pesticides, some populations evolve tolerance through the process of natural selection acting across multiple generations. Alternatively, populations that are intermittently exposed to pesticides induce tolerance within a single generation. To date, however, there have been few studies examining the costs associated with these different stress tolerance mechanisms. In this study, we examined how difference in stress tolerance influence susceptibility to parasitic infections. We …