Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Keyword
Articles 1 - 4 of 4
Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Genetic Relatedness Can Alter The Strength Of Plant-Soil Feedbacks, Kelly M. Clark
Genetic Relatedness Can Alter The Strength Of Plant-Soil Feedbacks, Kelly M. Clark
Masters Theses
Intraspecific variation may play a key role in understanding the relationships between plants and their interactions with soil microbial communities. The effects that soil-microbes have on individuals can venerate variation across individuals in their responsiveness. I explored how relatedness alters plant-soil feedbacks in established Solidago altissima clones grown in a common garden. Seedlings of known parentage were inoculated with soils from the maternal, paternal, or unrelated clones and compared to autoclaved control inocula. I found that the soil inocula generated from S. altissima had an overall negative effect of seedling biomass. Furthermore, seedlings inoculated with maternal or paternal soils experienced …
Is Context Dependency Imperative To Understanding The Impacts Of Invasive Plants?, Brendan B. Haile
Is Context Dependency Imperative To Understanding The Impacts Of Invasive Plants?, Brendan B. Haile
Masters Theses
Introduced exotic species have a tendency to become invasive and impact local biological communities. Invasions often impact community attributes such as cover and species richness, but these factors may also regulate patterns of invasion. In such cases, impacts may be dependent on the invasion context. We used data from the Buell-Small Succession Study, a long-term permanent plot study in the piedmont region of New Jersey, to document context dependency in invasion. To do this, we analyzed the factors that affected the colonization and growth of four invasive species, Alliaria petiolata, Lonicera japonica, Microstegium vimineum and Rosa multiflora, as well …
Effects Of Insect Opportunists On A Four-Level Trophobiotic System Involving Nectar-Producing Galls Of The Cynipid Wasp Disholcaspis Quercusmamma (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae), Stephanie L. Smith
Effects Of Insect Opportunists On A Four-Level Trophobiotic System Involving Nectar-Producing Galls Of The Cynipid Wasp Disholcaspis Quercusmamma (Hymenoptera: Cynipidae), Stephanie L. Smith
Masters Theses
The induction of plant galls is considered an adaptive life history trait found in many insect groups. The formation of galls provides several advantages to the gall maker, such as enhanced nutrition, favorable microclimate, and protection from natural enemies, including parasitoids, inquilines, and predators. Order Hymenoptera has many gall-making species, belonging to the gall wasp family Cynipidae. As an extended phenotype of the gall makers, some galls exhibit very sophisticated adaptive mechanisms involving multilevel species interactions. In particular, the oak galls of the Cynipid species Disholcaspis quercusmamma, found in much of Illinois, produce a palatable, sugary nectar-like secretion, attracting …
Aspects Of The Trophic Ecology Of An Invertivorous Snake Community, Meagan Amanda Thomas
Aspects Of The Trophic Ecology Of An Invertivorous Snake Community, Meagan Amanda Thomas
Masters Theses
Understanding the significance of trophic links has been of interest to ecologists for decades, likely because food web studies have the potential to reveal a considerable amount of information in the fields of ecosystem and community ecology. Despite the intrinsic benefits that come from elucidating food web structures, doing so is often problematic because of the complex and dynamic nature of ecological communities. The dietary ecology of small-bodied invertivorous snakes remains relatively understudied compared to other snake species. Many of these species are abundant throughout their range, making them ideal organisms for studying community-level questions. I employed a combination of …