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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

How Metamorphosis Is Different In Plethodontids: Larval Life History Perspectives On Life-Cycle Evolution, Christopher K. Beachy, Travis Ryan, Ronald M. Bonett Oct 2017

How Metamorphosis Is Different In Plethodontids: Larval Life History Perspectives On Life-Cycle Evolution, Christopher K. Beachy, Travis Ryan, Ronald M. Bonett

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Plethodontid salamanders exhibit biphasic, larval form paedomorphic, and direct developing life cycles. This diversity of developmental strategies exceeds that of any other family of terrestrial vertebrate. Here we compare patterns of larval development among the three divergent lineages of biphasic plethodontids and other salamanders. We discuss how patterns of life-cycle evolution and larval ecology might have produced a wide array of larval life histories. Compared with many other salamanders, most larval plethodontids have relatively slow growth rates and sometimes exceptionally long larval periods (up to 60 mo). Recent phylogenetic analyses of life-cycle evolution indicate that ancestral plethodontids were likely direct …


Analysis Of Copy Number Variation In The Abp Gene Regions Of Two House Mouse Subspecies Suggests Divergence During The Gene Family Expansions, Željka Pezer, Amanda G. Chung, Robert C. Karn, Christina M. Laukaitis Jun 2017

Analysis Of Copy Number Variation In The Abp Gene Regions Of Two House Mouse Subspecies Suggests Divergence During The Gene Family Expansions, Željka Pezer, Amanda G. Chung, Robert C. Karn, Christina M. Laukaitis

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

The Androgen-binding protein (Abp) gene region of the mouse genome contains 64 genes, some encoding pheromones that influence assortative mating between mice from different subspecies. Using CNVnator and quantitative PCR, we explored copy number variation in this gene family in natural populations of Mus musculus domesticus (Mmd) and Mus musculus musculus (Mmm), two subspecies of house mice that form a narrow hybrid zone in Central Europe. We found that copy number variation in the center of the Abp gene region is very common in wild Mmd, primarily representing the presence/absence of the final …


Influence Of Light Quality And Quantity On Heterophylly In The Aquatic Plant Nymphaea Odorata Subsp. Tuberosa (Nymphaeaceae), Travis Ryan May 2017

Influence Of Light Quality And Quantity On Heterophylly In The Aquatic Plant Nymphaea Odorata Subsp. Tuberosa (Nymphaeaceae), Travis Ryan

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Heterophylly, the production of different leaf forms on the same plant, is a widespread phenomenon in terrestrial and aquatic plants and provides an opportunity to study how sessile organisms sense and respond to changes in environmental factors. Nymphaea odorata subsp. tuberosa (American White Water Lily) produces 2 distinct leaf forms: a floating surface leaf and an aerial form in which the lamina is held above the water. Previous research suggests that changes in the light environment may be a critical determinant of heterophylly in Nymphaea. In this study, we tested the hypothesis that changes in light quantity and light quality …


Results Of The 2016 Indianapolis Biodiversity Survey, Marion County, Indiana, Jeffrey D. Holland, Rebecca W. Dolan, Jeremy J. Sheets, Michael S. Finkler, Brant E. Fisher, Roger L. Hedge, Tom Swinford, Nick Harby, Robert P. Jean, Megan K. Martin, Bill Mcknight, Marc Milne, Kirk Roth, Paul Rothrock, Carl Strang Jan 2017

Results Of The 2016 Indianapolis Biodiversity Survey, Marion County, Indiana, Jeffrey D. Holland, Rebecca W. Dolan, Jeremy J. Sheets, Michael S. Finkler, Brant E. Fisher, Roger L. Hedge, Tom Swinford, Nick Harby, Robert P. Jean, Megan K. Martin, Bill Mcknight, Marc Milne, Kirk Roth, Paul Rothrock, Carl Strang

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Surprising biodiversity can be found in cities, but urban habitats are understudied. We report on a bioblitz conducted primarily within a 24-hr period on September 16 and 17, 2016 in Indianapolis, Indiana, USA. The event focused on stretches of three waterways and their associated riparian habitat: Fall Creek (20.6 ha; 51 acres), Pleasant Run (23.5 ha; 58 acres), and Pogue’s Run (27.1 ha; 67 acres). Over 75 scientists, naturalists, students, and citizen volunteers comprised 14 different taxonomic teams. Five hundred ninety taxa were documented despite the rainy conditions. A brief summary of the methods and findings are presented here. Detailed …


Featured Herbarium: But—The Friesner Herbarium Of Butler University, Rebecca W. Dolan Jan 2017

Featured Herbarium: But—The Friesner Herbarium Of Butler University, Rebecca W. Dolan

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Feature written by Rebecca Dolan on the BUT—The Friesner Herbarium of Butler University in the Vasculum.


Floristic Inventory Of Woollen’S Gardens Nature Preserve, Indianapolis, Marion County, Indiana, Usa, With Quantitative Vegetation Sampling Of Permanent Plots In 2003 And 2016, Rebecca W. Dolan, Marcia E. Moore Jan 2017

Floristic Inventory Of Woollen’S Gardens Nature Preserve, Indianapolis, Marion County, Indiana, Usa, With Quantitative Vegetation Sampling Of Permanent Plots In 2003 And 2016, Rebecca W. Dolan, Marcia E. Moore

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Urban forest fragments face challenges to habitat quality due to small size, isolation from larger natural areas, and close association with anthropogenic disturbance. Monitoring changes in vegetation can inform management practices targeted at preserving biodiversity in the face of these threats. Woollen’s Gardens is a high-quality mesic upland forest preserve in the city of Indianapolis, Indiana, USA, with a beechmaple older-growth forest and a significant display of showy spring wildflowers. The entire preserve was inventoried and quantitative vegetation analysis along seven 100 m transects was conducted in 2003 and again in 2016 to track changes. Data from both years document …