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Articles 1 - 29 of 29
Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Practical Solutions To The Invasion Of Lionfish In Utila, Honduras: Science, Education, Food, And Jewelry, Carolyn Corley
Practical Solutions To The Invasion Of Lionfish In Utila, Honduras: Science, Education, Food, And Jewelry, Carolyn Corley
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Lionfish (Pterois sp.) are invasive species capable of devastating coral reef ecosystems due to their lack of predators, large appetites, generalist diet, high fecundity, and rapid spawning rates. As lionfish have expanded their distribution across the Caribbean, many conservation groups have taken it upon themselves to systematically remove these predators from environments where they are threatening native species. However, few have involved the community the way I observed while interning with the Whale Shark and Oceanic Research Center in Utila, Honduras. Protecting coral reefs is extremely important, especially in small communities like Utila, where the majority of people’s …
East Tennessee Spatial And Temporal Species-Specific Bat Activity Patterns, Seth Morelock
East Tennessee Spatial And Temporal Species-Specific Bat Activity Patterns, Seth Morelock
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Determining the activity among species-specific bat populations within specific habitat selections can help contribute to the conservation of Appalachian bat species. This study examines the differences in species-specific bat activity patterns between three ponds of variable sizes and a southeast-facing open field with a wooded edge. Four Song Meter SM4BAT FS bioacoustics detectors were used on a 15-acre property in Fall Branch, TN, with a wildlife acoustics detector being placed at three ponds and one field. There were three stages of data collection for this study which all took place during 2023. The first stage was during the spring (March …
Fecal Pellet Production By North Atlantic Zooplankton, Michael Gibson
Fecal Pellet Production By North Atlantic Zooplankton, Michael Gibson
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Fecal pellet carbon (FPC) production by zooplankton is a significant component of the ocean’s biological carbon pump: the suite of biological processes that mediate export of carbon to the deep ocean, ultimately leading to the sequestration of atmospheric carbon dioxide in the ocean. In this study, mesozooplankton (zooplankton 0.2 mm to ~2 cm) were collected from the epipelagic zone in the temperate North Atlantic Ocean during day and night in May 2021. Zooplankton were live separated into five size fractions and incubated on board ship in natural surface seawater to measure fecal pellet production rate of the mixed mesozooplankton community. …
Patterns And Sources Of Variation In Heterospecific Pollen Deposition In Flowers Of The Native Blue Cardinal Flower (Lobelia Siphilitica), Allie Drinnon
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Plants species interactions via pollinators are a model system to understand the mechanisms that generate plant diversity in nature. However, most studies have focused on plant-plant interactions via pollinator attraction while ignoring the role of plant-plant interactions via pollen transfer. Heterospecific pollen transfer (henceforth HP) can be common and have negative fitness effects. Negative HP fitness effects may prompt the evolution of adaptive strategies to minimize them. However, the extent of spatial variation in HP load size within and among populations, a tenet for natural selection, remains unexplored. Such knowledge would hence constitute a first step in advancing our understanding …
Epidemiology And Impacts Of A Leaf Spot Disease In Veratrum Viride (Melanthiaceae), Leeah R. Sutton, Foster Levy
Epidemiology And Impacts Of A Leaf Spot Disease In Veratrum Viride (Melanthiaceae), Leeah R. Sutton, Foster Levy
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Fungal phytopathogens can cause disease epidemics in crops, weeds, and
populations of native plants. To investigate the impact of a foliar phytopathogen on the native herbaceous species, Veratrum viride, a demographic and disease assessment was carried out on two high elevation grassy bald populations on Roan Mountain, Tennessee. A leaf spot disease impacted all plants in both populations, causing widespread premature senescence of leaves and stems. Disease severity increased over the course of the growing season. Based on host disease symptoms and fungal conidia morphology, Pseudocercosporella sublineolata was shown to be the causal pathogen. A study of herbarium specimens …
Relating Occupancy Patterns To Multi-Life-History Scales For Pond-Breeding Anurans In Eastern Virginia, Patrick A. Hardner
Relating Occupancy Patterns To Multi-Life-History Scales For Pond-Breeding Anurans In Eastern Virginia, Patrick A. Hardner
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Amphibians are experiencing population declines worldwide due to a multitude of factors, including habitat loss. Therefore, assessments of breeding habitat occupancy are important to determine which environmental characteristics are crucial for conservation of amphibians. While most research assesses habitat conditions at the breeding site (i.e., pond or wetland), for many species this misrepresents annual habitat use as many migrate to terrestrial habitats once breeding is completed. To provide a comprehensive assessment of annual habitat use, we evaluated how anuran (i.e., frog and toad) breeding site occupancy related to three life-history scales: breeding, migration and dispersal. Basically, the three scales define …
Severe Hypoxia Up-Regulates Gluconeogenesis In Daphnia, Morad C. Malek
Severe Hypoxia Up-Regulates Gluconeogenesis In Daphnia, Morad C. Malek
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Hypoxia is a significant low oxygen state that has complex and diverse impacts on organisms. In aerobes, various adaptive responses to hypoxia are observed that vary depending on the level of oxygen depletion and previous adaptation, hence the continued attention to hypoxia as an important abiotic stressor. Adaptive responses to hypoxia are primarily governed by the hypoxia-inducible factors (HIFs), which activate downstream genetic pathways responsible for oxygen transport and metabolic plasticity. In aquatic habitats, oxygen availability can vary greatly over time and space. Therefore, aquatic organisms’ adaptation to hypoxia is likely pervasive, especially in genotypes originating from waterbodies prone to …
Carrying Capacity Of Cultured Bivalves In Cherrystone Inlet, Va, And The Implications Of Spatial Distribution And Environmental Change, Sophia Chirico
Carrying Capacity Of Cultured Bivalves In Cherrystone Inlet, Va, And The Implications Of Spatial Distribution And Environmental Change, Sophia Chirico
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Aquaculture is a growing industry internationally. In the United States, aquaculture of bivalves occurs throughout the Chesapeake Bay. Cherrystone Inlet, a tidal inlet on the Virginia Eastern Shore, is the location of intensive hard clam culture, and recently oyster aquaculture has become common there as well. Given the intensive culture in Cherrystone and similar systems in the Chesapeake, it is important to understand the carrying capacity of the respective bivalves and how they can be grown together. Carrying capacity is defined here as the largest population of individuals that can be supported that allows individuals to reach a harvestable size …
Analysis Of Edna To Assess Effects Of Water Quality On Freshwater Fungal Diversity In A Virginia Coastal Watershed, Lauren French
Analysis Of Edna To Assess Effects Of Water Quality On Freshwater Fungal Diversity In A Virginia Coastal Watershed, Lauren French
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Freshwater fungi comprise a phylogenetically and functionally diverse group which contributes to wide-ranging ecosystem processes in aquatic systems. Saprotrophic fungi convert detritus into nutrient-rich food sources for fish and invertebrates, whereas pathogenic and parasitic fungi can cause disease and population declines of other aquatic organisms. With their diverse and important roles, changes in freshwater fungal community structure may have far-reaching impacts on ecosystems. To understand how natural and anthropogenic stressors to freshwater systems impact fungal-mediated ecosystem processes, a greater understanding of the taxonomic and functional composition of freshwater fungal communities is needed. We assessed relationships among freshwater habitat types, water …
Rapid Morphological Divergence In Three Introduced Cichlid Species, Khalil Russell
Rapid Morphological Divergence In Three Introduced Cichlid Species, Khalil Russell
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Cichlids are well-known for their capacity to exploit trophic niches in their environments through rapid speciation and morphological diversification; the best-documented case of such diversification in cichlids occurred in the African Rift Valley. With numerous species established in Florida, the purpose of this study was to explore how members of the family Cichlidae have managed to invade so successfully by focusing on morphological differences between native and non-native (Floridian) populations of three cichlid species: Pelmatolapia mariae, Mayaheros urophthalmus, and Parachromis managuensis. Using both linear measurements and 2D landmark geometric morphometry, I found that all three species have diverged in …
Mysteries And Uncertainties In Tracing Cryptic Viral Infections, Melaina Jacoby
Mysteries And Uncertainties In Tracing Cryptic Viral Infections, Melaina Jacoby
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Viruses are the most abundant biological entities on Earth. Viral impacts are evident from the level of individual cells and population all the way up to ecosystems and global elemental cycles. Since bacteriophages (viruses that infect bacteria) were first identified in the early twentieth century, the study of these fascinating entities has shown how viral dynamics within ecosystems can influence microbially-mediated processes at a large scale. Viral infections can impact hosts and host-mediated processes in in multiple ways, one of which is through cryptic infections. This state, in which a bacterium may harbor a cryptic phage infection, is known as …
Synthetic Viral Pyrogen Induces Behavioral Fever In Plethodon Glutinosus Salamanders, Nicholas Britt
Synthetic Viral Pyrogen Induces Behavioral Fever In Plethodon Glutinosus Salamanders, Nicholas Britt
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Behavioral fever is an essential coping mechanism across ectothermic phyla to aid in combating pathogenic threats. Ectotherms lack internal temperature regulation associated with fever in endotherms; thus, ectotherms can exhibit a behavioral fever response when immunocompromised to thermoregulate by moving to warmer locations. The salamander order Caudata, tend to be keystone species in their resident ecosystems through their role as secondary consumers of invertebrates to maintain the food chain. With growing interest about ecology and conservation of salamanders as species diversity declines, this study was designed to determine if salamanders use their environment to take advantage of behavioral fever. The …
Three Centuries Of Vegetation Change In The William & Mary College Woods Reconstructed Using Phytoliths, Timothy Terlizzi
Three Centuries Of Vegetation Change In The William & Mary College Woods Reconstructed Using Phytoliths, Timothy Terlizzi
Undergraduate Honors Theses
The College Woods, west of William & Mary’s campus, consists of ~900 acres of protected southern mixed hardwood forest. The woods surround Lake Matoaka, a former millpond established in ~1700. Despite the rich history of the area, little is known about how the dominant vegetative landcover has shifted over the last 300 years. This study set out to quantify the modern vegetation within the College Woods via the phytolith assemblages within the soil and identify shifts in the assemblages since the creation of Lake Matoaka and whether these changes are distinct from the vegetation that existed in the area before …
Use Of Lymesim 2.0 To Assess The Potential For Single And Integrated Management Methods To Control Blacklegged Ticks (Ixodes Scapularis; Acari: Ixodidae) And Transmission Of Lyme Disease Spirochetes, Shravani Chitineni, Elizabeth R. Gleim, Holly D. Gaff
Use Of Lymesim 2.0 To Assess The Potential For Single And Integrated Management Methods To Control Blacklegged Ticks (Ixodes Scapularis; Acari: Ixodidae) And Transmission Of Lyme Disease Spirochetes, Shravani Chitineni, Elizabeth R. Gleim, Holly D. Gaff
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Annual Lyme disease cases continue to rise in the U.S. making it the most reported vector-borne illness in the country. The pathogen (Borrelia burgdorferi) and primary vector (Ixodes scapularis; blacklegged tick) dynamics of Lyme disease are complicated by the multitude of vertebrate hosts and varying environmental factors, making models an ideal tool for exploring disease dynamics in a time- and cost-effective way. In the current study, LYMESIM 2.0, a mechanistic model, was used to explore the effectiveness of three commonly used tick control methods: habitat-targeted acaricide (spraying), rodent-targeted acaricide (bait boxes), and white-tailed deer targeted acaricide (4-poster …
Temporal Factors Affecting Foraging Patterns Of A Diurnal Orb-Weaving Spider, Micrathena Gracilis (Araneae: Araneidae), Mitchell Davis Long
Temporal Factors Affecting Foraging Patterns Of A Diurnal Orb-Weaving Spider, Micrathena Gracilis (Araneae: Araneidae), Mitchell Davis Long
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Several studies have investigated the ecological factors that affect behavior in Micrathena gracilis, a diurnal orb-weaving spider that forages on flying insects during the day. However, none yet have considered how the temporal distributions of prey and predator occurrences shape their daily behavioral rhythms, especially web construction, which involves a heavy energetic investment well in advance of potential nutritional benefit. Recently, several orb-weaving spider species have been shown to exhibit a variety of abnormal rhythms, suggesting that circadian clock-controlled rhythms may play an unexpected role in behavioral evolution. Despite the appearance of significant insect abundance in the evenings, M. gracilis …
Effects Of Non-Photic Zeitgebers On The Circadian Clock In The Common House Spider, Parasteatoda Tepidariorum (Araneae: Theridiidae), Mattea Garmany, Darrell Moore, Thomas C. Jones
Effects Of Non-Photic Zeitgebers On The Circadian Clock In The Common House Spider, Parasteatoda Tepidariorum (Araneae: Theridiidae), Mattea Garmany, Darrell Moore, Thomas C. Jones
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Circadian rhythms are endogenous cycles that control physiological and behavioral changes that can be affected by environmental factors which allow most eukaryotic organisms to synchronize their daily activities with the 24-hour day. Parasteatoda tepidariorum,the common house spider, demonstrates a short-period circadian clock averaging 21.6 hours when left in constant darkness, yet they are able to entrain to a 24-hour light cycle. We tested whether these spiders were able to use non-photic Zeitgebers to entrain to the 24-hour day. Periodic presentation of food and disturbance were not found to be effective cues for the spiders’ entrainment. A few individuals were clearly …
Ticks On Lizards: Parasite-Host Interactions Of The Southern Alligator Lizard (Elgaria Multicarinata) In Washington State, Emma Houghton
Ticks On Lizards: Parasite-Host Interactions Of The Southern Alligator Lizard (Elgaria Multicarinata) In Washington State, Emma Houghton
Undergraduate Honors Theses
I investigated interactions between ectoparasites (ticks) and their host, the southern alligator lizard (Elgaria multicarinata). Alligator lizards are capable of complement-mediated killing of the Lyme disease spirochete carried by ticks and may potentially reduce Lyme disease prevalence by cleansing pathogenic organisms from ticks. Despite this, little is known about host-parasite dynamics in alligator lizards. My goals were to 1) assess patterns of tick presence (i.e. parasite load) on alligator lizards and 2) investigate potential negative effects of ticks on alligator lizards. I sampled lizards during the summer of 2019 near Catherine Creek, along the Columbia River Gorge in southern Washington. …
Investigating The Avian Species Composition, Diversity, And Abundance Of Engelhorn Pond, Kiana Rose
Investigating The Avian Species Composition, Diversity, And Abundance Of Engelhorn Pond, Kiana Rose
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Central Washington University’s Engelhorn Pond contains important habitats for many organisms, particularly migratory birds, and is a valuable resource for students. However, little information is available about the wildlife inhabiting the pond. The pond’s discrete location means that many people are unaware of its existence. In addition, the pond is threatened by a number of anthropogenic sources, including chemical runoff, garbage, and feral cats. By using point counts, a common ornithological survey technique, I recorded the bird species present at the pond during all seasons of the year. I collected data using point counts during 13 visits from June of …
Circadian Rhythms Of The Spider Pholcus Phalangeoides In Activity Monitors And Web Boxes, Steven Dirmeyer
Circadian Rhythms Of The Spider Pholcus Phalangeoides In Activity Monitors And Web Boxes, Steven Dirmeyer
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Circadian rhythms are endogenous molecular clocks that correspond to the 24-hour day and are regulated by light stimulus, allowing organisms to entrain to the dawn-dusk cycle. These clocks may allow organisms to anticipate daily events, influencing their behavior. In arthropods, including spiders, circadian rhythmicity is tested using activity monitors, which house individuals in tubes. However, this does not reflect the natural habitat of many spiders. We compared the locomotor activity of the cellar spider Pholcus phalangiodes in activity monitors with the locomotor activity in web boxes. After being entrained to a 12:12 light:dark cycle, the spiders were recorded in constant …
Effect Of Adult Chemical Cues On Molting Of Fiddler Crab Megalopae In Low Salinity Seawater, Sydney Rilum
Effect Of Adult Chemical Cues On Molting Of Fiddler Crab Megalopae In Low Salinity Seawater, Sydney Rilum
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Three species of fiddler crabs, Uca minax, U. pugnax, and U. pugilator, are commonly found in estuaries along the Atlantic coast, each with distinct adult habitats differing in salinity and sediment grain size. Prior research has found evidence for larvae exhibiting selective settlement; however, the degree to which and the method by which they choose their species-appropriate habitat to settle in is still unknown. Additionally, a recent study determined that chemical cues from adult crabs stimulate molting in field-caught fiddler crab megalopae, as previously determined in lab-reared megalopae; however, in 35 ppt seawater, few U. minax molted. …
Social Play Predicts Docility In Juvenile Ground Squirrels, James Hurst-Hopf, Scott L. Nunes
Social Play Predicts Docility In Juvenile Ground Squirrels, James Hurst-Hopf, Scott L. Nunes
Undergraduate Honors Theses
We evaluated the hypothesis that social play behavior influences the development of temperament in young animals, using docility as a measure of temperament. We observed the play behavior of juvenile Belding’s ground squirrels (Urocitellus beldingi) during the developmental period in which play primarily occurs, and conducted behavioral tests measuring docility at the beginning and end of the play interval. Tests involved handling squirrels and recording their responses. Body mass was a reliable predictor of docility at the beginning of the play period. Rates of social play and maximum distances traveled from the natal burrow during the play interval …
Determining The Physiological And Behavioral Aspects Of Salinity Tolerance In The Asian Clam, Corbicula Fluminea, John Roden
Undergraduate Honors Theses
The Asian clam, Corbicula fluminea, is an invasive bivalve species that now occurs through most of the lower 48 United States. While a significant degree of salinity tolerance has been observed in C. fluminea, owing to its estuarine lineage, the physiological and behavioral responses to changes in salinity by these organisms are not completely understood. It was hypothesized that Corbicula would initially avoid elevated salinity levels (>1 g/L) behaviorally through valve closure, but would eventually have to open to dispel anaerobic waste products and deal with the salinity. To explore this, Corbicula were collected and put through …
Phylogenetic Analysis Of Human Cytomegalovirus Pus27 And Pus28: Ascertaining An Independent Or Linked Evolutionary History, Jessica A. Scarborough
Phylogenetic Analysis Of Human Cytomegalovirus Pus27 And Pus28: Ascertaining An Independent Or Linked Evolutionary History, Jessica A. Scarborough
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a widespread pathogen that is particularly skilled at evading immune detection and defense mechanisms, largely due to extensive co-evolution with its host’s immune system. One aspect of this co-evolution involves the acquisition of four virally encoded GPCR chemokine receptor homologs, products of the US27, US28, UL33 and UL78 genes. G protein-coupled receptors (GPCR) are the largest family of cell surface proteins, found in organisms from yeast to humans. In this research, phylogenetic analysis was used to investigate the origins of the US27 and US28 genes, which are adjacent in the viral genome. The results indicate that …
Tropical Trees As Islands: Diversity Accumulation Of Armored Scale Insects (Hemiptera: Diaspididae) On Trees As A Function Of Forest Age, Hannah Shapiro
Tropical Trees As Islands: Diversity Accumulation Of Armored Scale Insects (Hemiptera: Diaspididae) On Trees As A Function Of Forest Age, Hannah Shapiro
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Armored scale insects (Hemiptera: Diaspididae) are some of the most invasive insects in the world. These cryptic plant parasites are most often encountered in managed agricultural ecosystems, but very little is known about their distribution, abundance, and diversity in tropical rainforest canopies, where they are likely to have their highest diversity. Because these ubiquitous insects are extreme generalists with undirected dispersal, their diversity (alpha and beta) accumulation can conceivably be modeled according to tenets derived from island biogeography theory. For example, one expectation is that older established trees should boast a higher species diversity and abundance than younger ones. Other …
Genetic Variation In Long-Term And Short-Term Physiological Changes In Daphnia Magna During Acclimation To High Temperature, Bret L. Coggins
Genetic Variation In Long-Term And Short-Term Physiological Changes In Daphnia Magna During Acclimation To High Temperature, Bret L. Coggins
Undergraduate Honors Theses
The aquatic zooplankton crustacean Daphnia magna must be able to tolerate thermal stress in order to survive their native shallow ponds that are susceptible to drastic seasonal and diurnal temperature fluctuations as well as to globally increasing temperatures. Survival in such variable environments requires plastic responses that must include fundamental aspects of Daphnia biochemistry and physiology. Adaptive response to selection favoring such plastic phenotypes requires the presence of genetic variation for plastic response in natural populations. Adverse effects of elevated temperature on aquatic organisms are diverse and so are their plastic responses; among the most severe challenges aquatic organisms face …
Demography And Disease Of The Rare Shrub Buckleya Distichophylla (Santalaceae) In Northeastern Tennessee, William Seth Ratliff
Demography And Disease Of The Rare Shrub Buckleya Distichophylla (Santalaceae) In Northeastern Tennessee, William Seth Ratliff
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Piratebush (Buckleya distichophylla (Nutt.) Torr.) is a rare, hemiparasitic shrub with the only extant populations in western North Carolina, northeastern Tennessee, and southwestern Virginia. The preferred natural hosts of piratebush, Carolina and eastern hemlocks, have seen sharp declines over the last decade due to the invasive hemlock woolly adelgid. Virginia pine, another important host of piratebush, is also susceptible to disease, specifically Cronartium appalachianum, a rust fungus for which piratebush is the secondary host. This study described and analyzed current demographic parameters of three Tennessee piratebush populations. Additionally, spatial patterns of disease and demographic characters were analyzed. These …
Local Patterns In Host-Selection By Anemone Symbionts In Bocas Del Toro, Panama, Samantha Mercer
Local Patterns In Host-Selection By Anemone Symbionts In Bocas Del Toro, Panama, Samantha Mercer
Undergraduate Honors Theses
The associations made between many symbiotic cleaner shrimps and their host anemone species are influenced by local ecological factors, resulting in regional variations in symbiont-host preferences. These relationships are crucial parts of aquatic ecosystems, and as we face rapid global environmental change, understanding the local patterns of this host specificity will be essential to maintaining healthy marine environments. However, sea anemones, as well as their symbiotic relationships, from the Caribbean coasts of Panama have been poorly studied and are largely under-represented in the current literature. The purpose of this study is to identify the local host-selection patterns, specifically regarding host-size …
Distribution And Identification Of Fish Eggs In An Internal Wave Transport Mechanism, Claire Kuelbs
Distribution And Identification Of Fish Eggs In An Internal Wave Transport Mechanism, Claire Kuelbs
Undergraduate Honors Theses
Internal waves have been proven to transport invertebrate larvae onshore, but there has been little indication on whether internal waves transport fish eggs. Fish eggs are typically buoyant and are often found in neustonic samples, and internal waves often cause fronts that transport oils and other light particles. This research aims to determine whether there are patterns to the distribution of fish eggs. One possibility is that offshore fish eggs can be transported onshore, to nearshore nursery habitats. Before 2003, when genetic barcoding was proposed as an identification mechanism, fish eggs could only be identified visually, using color, size, and …
Relationship Between Relative Hive Entrance Position And Dance Floor Location, Chelsea E. Corrigan
Relationship Between Relative Hive Entrance Position And Dance Floor Location, Chelsea E. Corrigan
Undergraduate Honors Theses
It has been observed that returning honey bee foragers congregate with unemployed foragers and food receiver bees in a localized region of the hive known as the dance floor. Here, the returning foragers advertise food sources via the waggle dance. It was hypothesized that the close proximity of the dance floor to the hive entrance was related to foragers minimizing time and travel inside the hive. The hive entrance is conventionally located at the bottom of the hive. It was suggested that this location was ideal for easy removal of debris. This correlation between dance floor location and hive entrance …