Life Sciences Commons^™

What Can We Learn From Confusing Olivella Columellaris And O. Semistriata, Two Key Species In Panamic Sandy Beach Ecosystems?, Alison Troost, Samantha Rupert, Ariel Cyrus, Frank Paladino, Benjamin Dattilo, Winfried Peters

Benjamin F. Dattilo

Deglaciation Explains Bat Extinction In The Caribbean, Liliana M. Davalos, Amy L. Russell

Amy L. Russell

Pre-Settlement History May Obscure The Effect Of Forest Fragmentation On Genetic Variation In Eastern Red-Backed Salamanders, Mark Jordan, Douglas Morris, Scott Gibson

Mark A. Jordan

No abstract provided.

The Effects Of Water And Habitat Quality On Amphibian Assemblages In Two Midwest Watersheds, Abel Castaneda, Mark Jordan

Mark A. Jordan

No abstract provided.

Catalogue Of Type Material In The Entomological Collection Of The University Of La Laguna (Canary Islands). I – Arachnida, Ana Reboleira, Antonio Pérez, Nuria Macías-Hernandez, Heriberto López, S. De La Cruz, Pedro Oromí

Ana Sofia P.S. Reboleira

A catalogue of arachnid type specimens of the collection kept at the Department of Animal Biology, University of La Laguna (Spain) is presented. It harbours type material of 104 species belonging to 23 families of arachnids, represented by 21 holotypes and 164 paratypes for 23 species of pseudoscorpions, and 49 holotypes, 218 paratypes and 3 syntypes for 81 species of spiders. This collection is using the criteria and standards of the Global Biodiversity Information Facility (GBIF) for cataloguing and computerization of the specimens. Type specimens were checked with the original descriptions, and relevant additional information from original labels not included …

Lusoblothrus, A New Syarinid Pseudoscorpion Genus (Arachnida) From Portugal, Occupying An Isolated Position Within The Holarctic Fauna, Ana Reboleira, Juan Zaragoza, Fernando Gonçalves, Pedro Oromí

Ana Sofia P.S. Reboleira

The new pseudoscorpion genus Lusoblothrus of the family Syarinidae is described from a cave in the Algarve region, southern Portugal, to accommodate L. aenigmaticus sp. nov., whose morphological affinities within the Holarctic syarinid fauna are not clear and resembles the Gondwanan genera. This discovery emphasizes the relevance of the Algarve region as a hotspot for relictual hypogean fauna within the Iberian Peninsula.

Shrews, Rats, And A Polecat In "The Pardoner's Tale", Sandy Feinstein, Neal Woodman

Neal Woodman

No abstract provided.

Euscorpius Sicanus (Scorpiones: Euscorpiidae) From Tunisia: Dna Barcoding Confirms Ancient Disjunctions Across The Mediterranean Sea, Matthew R. Graham, Pavel Stoev, Nesrine Akkari, Gergin Blagoev, Victor Fet

Victor Fet

We used a DNA barcoding marker (mitochondrial cox1) to investigate the controversial natural occurrence of Euscorpius sicanus (C.L. Koch) in North Africa. We tested this hypothesis by comparing a sample collected from a mountain in Tunisia to disjunct populations in Sardinia, Malta, and Greece. Using these samples, and a few additional Euscorpius spp. from southern Europe as outgroups, we reconstructed the maternal phylogeny. We then used a molecular clock to place the phylogeny in a temporal context. The Tunisian sample grouped closest to a specimen from Sardinia, with both being more distantly related to E. sicanus from Malta, which is …

Distributional Records Of Shrews (Mammalia, Soricomorpha, Soricidae) From Northern Central America With The First Record Of Sorex From Honduras, Neal Woodman, John O. Matson, Timothy J. Mccarthy, Ralph P. Eckerlin, Walter Bulmer, Nicté Ordóñez-Garza

Neal Woodman

No abstract provided.

The Art And Artistic Legacy Of Louis Agassiz Fuertes, Paul A. Johnsgard

Paul Johnsgard

Perhaps some Nebraska birders will not immediately recognize the name Louis Agassiz Fuertes, as he died almost 80 years ago. Yet he influenced the art of bird painting as much as did John James Audubon, and provided wonderful artwork for many major state bird reference books. He also personally tutored George Miksch Sutton, the Nebraska-born artist and biologist who provided the NOU with its Burrowing Owl logo, and who contributed greatly to American ornithology, especially that of the southern Great Plains. It is interesting that, like John James Audubon, Roger Tory Peterson, and George Miksch Sutton, we would never think …

A Nebraska Bird-Finding Guide, Paul A. Johnsgard

Paul Johnsgard

Nebraska lies in the transition zone between North American eastern and western avifaunas and is home to more than 200 breeding and 150 migrant species. This definitive guide to Nebraska birdwatching by the state’s preeminent ornithologist includes a county-by-county rundown of the best sites, a calendar of migrations, an annotated checklist of regularly occurring Nebraska birds, and recommendations for optical equipment, publications and reference materials, and contact information for conservation and ornithological groups. It features 48 maps as well as photographs and drawings by the author. Paul Johnsgard, Foundation Professor Emeritus of Biological Sciences at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, is …

Review Of 'My Way To Ornithology' By Olin Pettingill, Jr., Paul A, Johnsgard

Paul Johnsgard

Most Nebraskans who recognize this author's name probably will remember him as a cinematographer and lecturer in the Audubon Screen Tour series. The series was a regular part of live entertainment in Lincoln and Omaha until the early 1960s. Other bird-oriented people will know that Pettingill wrote two of the first and still best regional bird-finding books (detailed guidebooks to bird-finding localities in the states east and west of the Mississippi, respectively). Perhaps still others will remember him as a one-time teacher of ornithology at Carleton College and the University of Michigan Biological Station, or as a director of the …

Historic Birds Of Lincoln's Salt Basin Wetlands And Nine-Mile Prairie, Paul A. Johnsgard

Paul Johnsgard

The changes that have occurred in the bird life of the Lincoln area during the past century must certainly be great, but we have little evidence to document this point. There is, however, an annotated bird list from 1900 for the salt basin wetlands of western Lincoln, an area then gradually being developed for recreational use. This list was published by J. S. Hunter in the Proceedings of the First Annual Meeting of the Nebraska Ornithologists' Union (1900, 18-21). At this time, the recently impounded but still saline lake was 2 to 3 feet deep, and it covered about two …

Louis A. Fuertes And The Zoological Art Of The 1926–1927 Abyssinian Expedition Of The Field Museum Of Natural History, Paul A. Johnsgard

Paul Johnsgard

The year 2009 marked the 110th anniversary of the first colored reproduction of a Fuertes painting; a watercolor of two seaside sparrows published in The Auk, when Fuertes was about 25 years old. Although Fuertes' life spanned little more than a half-century, and most living ornithologists were born after his tragic 1927 death, his influence on natural history art has not lessened. This manuscript is a testimony to his enduring artistic legacy. I first looked in awe at the original set of Fuertes paintings in the summer of 1995, during a visit to the Field Museum in conjunction with my …

A Cluster-Based Approach For Biological Hypothesis Testing And Its Application, Ahmed Mustafa

Ahmed Mustafa Dr.

No abstract provided.

What Can We Learn From Confusing Olivella Columellaris And O. Semistriata, Two Key Species In Panamic Sandy Beach Ecosystems?, Alison Troost, Samantha Rupert, Ariel Cyrus, Frank Paladino, Benjamin Dattilo, Winfried Peters

Winfried S. Peters

High Connectivity And Minimal Genetic Structure Among North American Boreal Owl (Aegolius Funereus) Populations, Regardless Of Habitat Matrix, M. E. Koopman, G. D. Hayward, David Mcdonald

David McDonald

Habitat connectivity and corridors are often assumed to be critical for the persistence of patchily distributed populations, but empirical evidence for this assumption is scarce. We assessed the importance of connectivity among habitat patches for dispersal by a mature-forest obligate, the Boreal Owl (Aegolius funereus). Boreal Owls demonstrated a lack of genetic structure (theta = 0.004 +/- 0.002 [SE]) among subpopulations, regardless of matrix type and extent, which indicates that unforested matrix does not act as a barrier to dispersal for this vagile species. We found only slightly higher genetic distances (Cavalli-Sforza chord distances ranged from 0.015 to 0.025) among …

Preliminary Assessment Of Burrowing Owl Population Status In Wyoming, N. M. Korfanta, L. W. Ayers, S. H. Anderson, David Mcdonald

David McDonald

Currently, little is known about Burrowing Owl (Athene cunicularia) abundance in Wyoming. The Wyoming Game and Fish Department (WCFD) classifies the Burrowing Owl as a Species of Special Concern. We identified available data sources to assess Burrowing Owl distribution and population trends in Wyoming and conducted a population survey in eastern Wyoming. The WGFD's Wildlife Observation System (WOS), initiated in 1974, shows a decline in Burrowing Owl records, particularly during the 12-yr period 1986-97. However, trends in WOS records over time likely reflect changing interest in the database, rather than real population trends. Likewise, Breeding Bird Survey data since 1971 …

Burrowing Owl (Athene Cunicularia) Population Genetics: A Comparison Of North American Forms And Migratory Habits, N. M. Korfanta, David Mcdonald, T. C. Glenn

David McDonald

We assessed the effects of range disjunction, migratory habit, coloniality, and habitat structure on the genetic differentiation of North American Burrowing Owl (Athene cunicularia) populations. Burrowing Owls in North America comprise two forms or subspecies: A. c. floridana in Florida, separated by ∼ 1,500 km from the western form, A. c. hypugaea, which ranges from Texas to California and north to southern Canada. Burrowing Owls tend to be loosely colonial, and both the Florida populations and southerly populations of A. c. hypugaea from California to Texas are nonmigratory. To assess genetic structure, we examined 201 individuals from nine western and …

Seasonal Oxygen-Metabolism And Cutaneous Osmoregulation In California Newt, Taricha-Torosa, Henry Harlow

Henry Harlow

While breathing air at rest, aquatic Taricha torosa consumed 0.054 cm302 g-1 h-1, which represent oxygen metabolism twice that of the terrestrial phase. There was no significant difference in the rate of oxygen consumption between phases upon sub-mergence. Aquatic newts accumulated a significantly higher lactate debt than the terrestrial phase while underwater. Aquatic newts had a higher emerged heart rate and exhibited a significantly greater bradycardial response after 40 min of dive. Although initiation of the response was relatively slow in both phases, lowest heart rates were realized after 60-120 min. The reduced oxygen uptake and increased blood lactate levels …

The Influence Of Hardarian Gland Removal And Fur Lipid Removal On Heat-Loss And Water Flux To And From The Skin Of Muskrats, Ondotra-Zibethicus, Henry Harlow

Henry Harlow

The Hardarian gland (an apocrine organ located behind the eye) was removed from one group of muskrats. Another group of muskrats was anesthetized and shampooed. The fur of shampooed and Hardarianectomized muskrats did not appear to repel water as effectively as sham control animals. Both shampooed and Hardarianectomized muskrats had higher rates of heat loss while submerged in a 4 C water bath than sham control animals. The magnitude of heat loss was less for the Hardarianectomized muskrats. Hardarianectomized and shampooed muskrats had elevated rates of evaporative water loss with an estimated cutaneous water loss of 52% and 66% of …

Torpor And Other Physiological Adaptations Of The Badger (Taxidea-Taxus) To Cold Environments, Henry Harlow

Henry Harlow

Oxygen consumption (Vo2) and heart rate were measured at ambient temperatures between +20 and -40 C. Basal metabolic rate was 0.3 cm3/g*h (65 beats/min), the body temperature was 38 C, the lower critical temperature (Tlc) was 10 C, and conductance was 0.01225 cm3/g*hoC. Fat composition of 79 adult badgers captured during the winter showed maximal fat deposition of 31% body weight in November. Fat stores were reduced 37% between November and March. The burrow temperature remained between 0 and 4 C throughout the winter. Badgers in outdoor enclosures during the winter of 1977-1978 reduced their above-ground exposure by 93% from …

Metabolic Adaptations To Prolonged Food-Deprivation By The American Badger Taxidea-Taxus, Henry Harlow

Henry Harlow

Energy expenditures for food processing, maintenance, and activity requirements were determined in the laboratory on the American badger, Taxidea taxus, both with ad lib. food and starved for 7, 20, and 30 days. Body weight decreased at about 76 g per day, resulting in a respiratory quotient (RQ) of 0.83 after 30 days of starvation. Energy requirements were calculated from Vo2 values. A 24.2%, 19.7%, and 26.3% reduction in total metabolism was observed at 7, 20, and 30 days, respectively, without food because of reduced maintenance and activity requirements. As a result, badgers were able to conserve approximately 17 g …

Avoidance Of Skeletal Muscle Atrophy In Spontaneous And Facultative Hibernators, Henry Harlow

Henry Harlow

Smooth and skeletal muscle changes were compared from overwintering white-tailed prairie dogs, spontaneous hibernators that undergo regular, low-temperature torpor bouts, and black-tailed prairie dogs, facultative hibernators that use sporadic, moderate-temperature torpor bouts. The objectives were to assess the abilities of these two species with dramatically different torpor patterns (1) to conserve skeletal muscle morphology, protein, and strength and (2) to use labile protein in the small intestine and liver during the winter season of reduced activity and food intake. Mass and protein concentration of the extensor digitorum longus (EDL), soleus, liver, and small intestine, as well as skeletal muscle strength …

Hibernating Bears Conserve Muscle Strength And Maintain Fatigue Resistance, T. D. Lohuis, Henry Harlow, T. Di Beck, P. A. Iaizzo

Henry Harlow

Black bears spend several months each winter confined to a small space within their den without food or water. In nonhibernating mammals, these conditions typically result in severe muscle atrophy, causing a loss of strength and endurance. However, an initial study indicated that bears appeared to conserve strength while denning. We conducted an in vivo, nonsubjective measurement of strength, resistance to fatigue, and contractile properties on the tibialis anterior muscle of six hibernating bears during both early and late winter using a rigid leg brace and foot force plate. After 110 d of anorexia and confinement, skeletal muscle strength loss …

Protein Use And Muscle-Fiber Changes In Free-Ranging, Hibernating Black Bears, D. B. Tinker, Henry Harlow, T. Di Beck

Henry Harlow

Studies of the metabolic and physiological changes that bears undergo during hibernation have, for the most part, supported the paradigm that bears use only fatty tissues as a metabolic substrate during hibernation. This study was performed to document the extent of protein loss and alteration of muscle-fiber characteristics of selected muscles in black bears during winter dormancy. Muscle biopsies were removed from the gas trocnemius and biceps femoris from seven free-ranging female black bears on the Uncompahgre Plateau in west-central Colorado. Six of the seven bears produced cubs during the hibernating season. Muscle samples were collected from the left hind …

Hummingbirds Fuel Hovering Flight With Newly Ingested Sugar, K. C. Welch, B. H. Bakken, Carlos Martinez Del Rio, R. K. Suarez

Carlos Martinez del Rio

We sought to characterize the ability of hummingbirds to fuel their energetically expensive hovering flight using dietary sugar by a combination of respirometry and stable carbon isotope techniques. Broadtailed hummingbirds (Selasphorus platycercus) were maintained on a diet containing beet sugar with an isotopic composition characteristic of C3 plants. Hummingbirds were fasted and then offered a solution containing cane sugar with an isotopic composition characteristic of C4 plants. By monitoring the rates of CO2 production and O-2 consumption, as well as the stable carbon isotope composition of expired CO2, we were able to estimate the relative contributions of carbohydrate and fat, …

The Cyanogenic Glycoside Amygdalin Does Not Deter Consumption Of Ripe Fruit By Cedar Waxwings, H. M. Struempf, J. E. Schondube, Carlos Martinez Del Rio

Carlos Martinez del Rio

Cyanogenic glycosides are common secondary compounds in ripe fruits that are dispersed by birds. These substances are toxic to some mammals. We examined the repellent effect of amygdalin, a cyanogenic glycoside, on Cedar Waxwings (Bombycilla cedrorum). Amygdalin did not reduce food ingestion in Cedar Waxwings, even at relatively high concentrations. In addition, these birds did not exhibit preference for amygdalin-free over amygdalin-containing fruit. Cedar Waxwings given artificial food that contained four times the amount of amygdalin found in some wild fruits ingested the equivalent of 5.5 times the oral lethal dose for rats in 4 h without exhibiting any external …

The Fate Of Carbon In Growing Fish: An Experimental Study Of Isotopic Routing, L. J. Kelly, Carlos Martinez Del Rio

Carlos Martinez del Rio

The application of stable isotope analysis to ecology requires estimating the contribution of different isotopic sources to the isotopic signatures of an animal's tissues using mixing models. These models make the physiologically unrealistic assumption that assimilated nutrients are disassembled into their elemental components and that these atoms are then reassembled into biomolecules. We quantified the extent to which mixing models yield erroneous results with an experiment using Nile tilapia (Oreochromis niloticus). The tilapia were fed synthetic diets that varied in protein content and in which the carbon isotopic composition of protein differed widely from that of carbohydrates and lipids. We …

Dietary Flexibility And Intestinal Plasticity In Birds: A Field And Laboratory Study, P. Sabat, F. Novoa, F. Bozinovic, Carlos Martinez Del Rio

Carlos Martinez del Rio

The adaptive modulation hypothesis posits that the expression of digestive proteins should be modulated in response to intake of their respective substrates. A corollary of this hypothesis suggests that dietary flexibility and digestive plasticity should be correlated. We examined these two hypotheses in two granivorous Chilean birds (Zonotrichia capensis and Diuca diuca) that differ in dietary breadth. D. diuca is a strict granivore, whereas Z. capensis also eats insects. In field-caught birds, the activity of the intestinal dipeptidase aminopeptidase-N was positively correlated with intake of insects in Z. capensis but not in D. diuca. This is the first field documentation …