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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Determining How Stable Network Oscillations Arise From Neuronal And Synaptic Mechanisms, Diana Martinez
Determining How Stable Network Oscillations Arise From Neuronal And Synaptic Mechanisms, Diana Martinez
Dissertations
Many animal behaviors involve the generation of rhythmic patterns and movements. These rhythmic patterns are commonly mediated by neural networks that produce an oscillatory activity pattern, where different neurons maintain a relative phase relationship. This thesis examines the relationships between the cellular and synaptic properties that give rise to stable activity in the form of phase maintenance, across different frequencies in a well-suited model system, the pyloric network of the crab Cancer borealis. The pyloric network has endogenously oscillating ‘pacemaker’ neurons that inhibit ‘follower’ neurons, which in turn feed back onto the pacemaker neurons. The focus of this thesis …
Attraction And Risk In Urban Bird Habitats, Megan E. Litwhiler
Attraction And Risk In Urban Bird Habitats, Megan E. Litwhiler
Dissertations
Urban expansion is an increasing threat to native bird populations. Consequently, maintaining and developing safe urban habitat space is necessary for conservation. Birds living in, or migrating through, urban areas utilize a variety of managed green-spaces such as parks, gardens, college campuses, and cemeteries. In addition to managed habitats, birds may use abandoned property that has been reclaimed by vegetation and associated spontaneous, biological communities. Such urban habitats may provide valuable resources for birds and other wildlife; however, these sites often contain high densities of non-native plants and can be polluted, potentially imparting a greater risk than benefit to the …
E Pluribus Unum: What Individual Whales Can Tell Us About Enigmatic Species Distribution And Social Organization, Tanya Marie Lubansky
E Pluribus Unum: What Individual Whales Can Tell Us About Enigmatic Species Distribution And Social Organization, Tanya Marie Lubansky
Dissertations
Large whales have historically been difficult to study and many aspects of their ecology remain unknown especially at the long -term population level. The ability to identify individual whales based on natural markings provides the opportunity to track individuals over time and space; this data may offer more insight into the ecology of whales than previously imagined. This study demonstrates use of photo-identification data to model both social structure and habitat selection, minimizing the need for invasive research and greatly increasing the sample size used in such endeavors. A conditional logistic model is written for a 20-year sightings dataset on …