Life Sciences Commons^™

The Effects Of Feed Additives In Beef Finishing Systems And The Effect Of Rumen Degradable Protein Supplementation In Corn Residue Grazing Systems With The Use Of Distillers On Growth Performance, Robert M. Jones

Department of Animal Science: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

One receiving trial evaluated the effect of the feed additive monensin (trade name: Rumensin) on steer growth performance in the receiving period while evaluating the effects of two receiving vaccinations on morbidity and mortality of newly received calves. No differences were observed in growth performance, morbidity rate or mortality rate between treatments for the first 28 d of receiving. A finishing trial evaluated the effect of the feed additive ractopamine hydrochloride (trade name: Optaflexx) on feedlot growth performance and carcass characteristics of crossbred yearling steers fed to differing degrees of finish. Feeding ractopamine hydrochloride at 300 mg improved ADG, G:F, …

Book Reviews: Raptors Of Mexico And Central America. William S. Clark And N. John Schmitt., Jack Jack Eitniear

The Prairie Naturalist

Whether a raptor is cryptically perched in the shadows or is viewed only as a silhouette soaring in the clouds below the glaring midday sun, raptor identification can be challenging. If you are observing raptors in the North Temperate Zone, several guides (e.g., Clark and Wheeler 2001 Dunne et al.2012) will aid you with such identifications, but few resources exist for visitors south of this zone. So, if you are interested in identifying the 69 species of diurnal raptors found in Mexico and Central America, the recently released Raptors of Mexico and Central America by William S. Clark and N. …

Field Discrimination Of Prairie Deer Mice And White-Footed Mice Using Morphological Characteristics, Jacob L. Berl, Kelton M. Verble, Elizabeth A. Flaherty, Robert K.S. Swihart

The Prairie Naturalist

Field discrimination of prairie deer mice (Peromyscus maniculatus bairdii) and white-footed mice (P. leucopus noveboracensis) can be difficult throughout much of the central United States where they co-occur. We live-trapped prairie deer mice and white-footed mice within forested and row-crop habitats in central Indiana and used multiplex PCR with species-specific primers to positively determine species identification. We collected a suite of commonly measured external morphological traits (body weight and lengths of ear, hindfoot, tail, and body) from each captured animal. Individuals were assigned to species based on analysis of DNA; discriminant function analysis was used to …

Horticulture For Pollinator Conservation, Carter M. Westerhold

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Pollinators worldwide are declining. Consequently, the agricultural and ecological services these insects provide are in danger of being lost. Land use intensification, via urbanization, has greatly influenced this decline in pollinators. Luckily, through targeted horticultural practices, stable populations of pollinators can be sustained within urban areas. The horticultural practices of planting diverse floral resources and managing pollinator habitat in urban areas can sustain these populations. Two studies were conducted with the intent to identify horticultural knowledge gaps that could be reduced to aid in pollinator conservation efforts. First, a study to compare Nebraska native and non-native ornamental plants was conducted. …

Monitoring Energy Expenditure Using A Multi-Sensor Device—Applications And Limitations Of The Sensewear Armband In Athletic Populations, Karsten Koehler, Clemens Drenowatz

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

In order to monitor their energy requirements, athletes may desire to assess energy expenditure (EE) during training and competition. Recent technological advances and increased customer interest have created a market for wearable devices that measure physiological variables and bodily movement over prolonged time periods and convert this information into EE data. This mini-review provides an overview of the applicability of the SenseWear armband (SWA), which combines accelerometry with measurements of heat production and skin conductivity, to measure total daily energy expenditure (TDEE) and its components such as exercise energy expenditure (ExEE) in athletic populations. While the SWA has been shown …

A Preliminary Catalogue Of The Moths (Lepidoptera Except Papilionoidea) Of Tobago, West Indies, Matthew J. W. Cock

Insecta Mundi

This catalogue comprises records of 355 species of moths (non-papilionoid Lepidoptera) from Tobago, of which 15 are partially identified. Of this total, all except 17 (5%) are known from Trinidad, although not all these records from Trinidad are published yet. Of these 17, eleven are expected to occur in Trinidad as they also occur on the mainland of South America and two are only known from Tobago but will probably also occur in Trinidad. This leaves just four species (1% of the total) that are known from the Lesser Antilles and are currently not known from further south than Tobago. …

Contribution To The Knowledge Of Chilean Gelechiidae (Lepidoptera: Gelechioidea), Danilo E. Cepeda

Insecta Mundi

A synopsis of the Chilean Gelechiidae (Lepidoptera: Gelechioidea) is presented, including an annotated list of species with geographic distributions and a compilation of previous references. New distribution records for four species are provided.

Se presenta una sinopsis de los Gelechiidae de Chile (Lepidoptera: Gelechioidea), que incluye un listado, con su distribución geográfica y una recopilación de antecedentes bibliográficos previos. Se entregan nuevos registros de distribución para cuatro especies.

Description Of A New Species Of Adesmus Lepeletier And Audinet-Serville, 1825, Displaying Chromatic Dimorphism, From Bolivia (Coleoptera, Cerambycidae, Lamiinae, Hemilophini), James E. Wappes, Antonio Santos-Silva

Insecta Mundi

Adesmus martinsi (Coleoptera, Cerambycidae, Lamiinae, Hemilophini), a new species from Bolivia, is described, illustrated, and included in a previous key. The new species displays gender dimorphism in the pubescent pattern and in anatomical structure. Thus, Adesmus becomes the second genus recorded in the Hemilophini to have visual chromatic dimorphism.

Descripción De Un Nuevo Género Y Especie De Longicornio Áptero De Perú (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), Cristian Pineda, Mauricio Cid-Arcos

Insecta Mundi

Se describe e ilustra Polytuberotum metachroma Pineda y Cid-Arcos gen. nov. y sp. nov. (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) proveniente de Perú. El nuevo género es fácilmente distinguible de Tuberolamia Breuning por su frente transversa y pronoto con espinas laterales y protuberancias discales.

Polytuberotum metachroma Pineda and Cid-Arcos gen. nov. and sp. nov. (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) from Peru is described and illustrated. The new genus is easily distinguished from Tuberolamia Breuning by its transverse frons and pronotum with lateral spines and discal protuberances.

Current Status Of Pseudococcidae (Hemiptera: Coccoidea) In South Korea, Ah-Ram Son, Soo-Jung Suh

Insecta Mundi

Thirty-one species of mealybugs (Hemiptera: Pseudococcidae) are reported from South Korea based upon monitoring surveys conducted from 2010 to 2016, along with a dichotomous key to separate them. Six species, Nipaecoccus nipae (Maskell), Palmicultor lumpurensis (Takahashi), Planococcus citri (Risso), Pseudococcus dendrobiorum Williams, Pseudococcus longispinus (Targioni-Tozzetti), and Pseudococcus orchidicola Takahashi, known only to occur in greenhouses, are considered as adventive mealybug species to South Korea; of these, P. citri has already established in the exterior environment in South Korea.

Description Of The Female Of Solenoptera Tomentosa Lingafelter, 2015 (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Prioninae: Solenopterini), Sergio Devesa, Elier Fonseca, Alejandro Barro

Insecta Mundi

The female of Solenoptera tomentosa Lingafelter, 2015 (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Prioninae: Solenopterini) is described and illustrated for the first time.

La hembra de Solenoptera tomentosa Lingafelter, 2015 (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Prioninae: Solenopterini) es descrita e ilustrada por primera vez.

Notes On The Tiger Beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae: Cicindelinae) Of Vietnam. 135. Contribution Towards The Knowledge Of Cicindelinae, Jürgen Wiesner, Aligi Bandinelli, Andrey Matalin

Insecta Mundi

Distributional records of the 177 tiger beetle species and subspecies known for Vietnam are given together with a key and habitus photos (Coleoptera: Carabidae: Cicindelinae). Tricondyla (Tricondyla) macrodera abruptesculpta Horn, 1925, Protocollyris festiva Naviaux, 2008, Neocollyris (Brachycollyris) purpureomaculata borea Naviaux, 1994, Neocollyris (Brachycollyris) torosa Naviaux, 2010, Neocollyris (Leptocollyris) rogeri Shook and Wu, 2006, Neocollyris (Leptocollyris) laosensis Naviaux, 1999, Neocollyris (Stenocollyris) rubens (Bates, 1878), Neocollyris (Pachycollyris) tricolor Naviaux, 1991, Neocollyris (Pachycollyris) panfilovi Naviaux and Matalin, 2002, Therates rugulosus Horn, 1900, Therates bannapecolus Sawada and Wiesner, 1999, Calochroa interruptofasciata flavolineata (Chaudoir, 1865), Cylindera (Ifasina) cyclobregma Acciavatti and Pearson, 1989, Cylindera (Ifasina) decolorata …

Who Is Trading In The Futures Markets And Why It Matters Part 2, Fabio Mattos

Cornhusker Economics

In a previous article (Who Is Trading in the Futures Markets and Why It Matters ?Part 1, 12/14/2016), we discussed the importance of learning about different types of traders in commodity markets and how we can obtain and understand the Commitments of Traders (COT) report, which provides data on trader's positions in futures markets. Today we will discuss some approaches to interpret COT reports, trying to assess the reasoning behind trading decisions from different traders, which can reflect their price outlook and provide insights on how futures prices might change.

Development Of A Broadly Protective Modified-Live Virus Vaccine Candidate Against Porcine Reproductive And Respiratory Syndrome Virus, Haiyan Sun, Aspen Workman, Fernando A. Osorio, David J. Steffen, Hiep L.X. Vu

Nebraska Center for Virology: Faculty Publications

Modified-live virus (MLV) vaccines are widely used to protect pigs against porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV). However, current MLV vaccines do not confer adequate levels of heterologous protection, presumably due to the substantial genetic diversity of PRRSV isolates circulating in the field. To overcome this genetic variation challenge, we recently generated a synthetic PRRSV strain containing a consensus genomic sequence of PRRSV-2. We demonstrated that our synthetic PRRSV strain confers unprecedented levels of heterologous protection. However, the synthetic PRRSV strain at passage 1 (hereafter designated CON-P1) is highly virulent and therefore, is not suitable to be used as …

Linking Taxonomic Diversity And Trophic Function: A Graph-Based Theoretical Approach, Marcella M. Jurotich, Kaitlyn Dougherty, Barbara Hayford, Sally Clark

Transactions of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences and Affiliated Societies

The purpose of this study is to develop a novel, visual method in analyzing complex functional trait data in freshwater ecology. We focus on macroinvertebrates in stream ecosystems under a gradient of habitat degradation and employ a combination of taxonomic and functional trait diversity analyses. Then we use graph theory to link changes in functional trait diversity to taxonomic richness and habitat degradation. We test the hypotheses that: 1) taxonomic diversity and trophic functional trait diversity both decrease with increased habitat degradation; 2) loss of taxa leads to a decrease in trophic function as visualized using a bipartite graph; and …

Community Size And Resident Satisfaction: Is There A Sweet Spot?, Randy Cantrell

Cornhusker Economics

Members of the rural development industry have long debated the existence of a "Best" community size in which to invest resources successfully. Some places, it is argued, are simply too small to attract the businesses and population required for sustained development. Population trends of the last 50 years seem to support this notion, since every rural regions and communities have consistently lost population while larger places have grown by serving as regional trade centers.

Livestock Air Emission Requirements, J. David Aiken

Cornhusker Economics

Federal environmental laws require the reporting of emissions of hazardous substances beyond EPA-established minimum amounts. EPA has established a 2008 reporting exemption for livestock operations smaller than large CAFOs (concentrated animal feeding operations). Environmental groups challenged the EPA livestock exemption. On April 11, 2017, the D.C. federal court of appeals invalidated the livestock reporting exemption. Reporting requirements will go into effect November 15, 2017 unless the court grants EPA an additional time extension for implementing the livestock reporting program.

Efficacy Of An Adenoviral Vectored Multivalent Centralized Influenza Vaccine, Amy Lingel, Brianna L. Bullard, Eric A. Weaver

Nebraska Center for Virology: Faculty Publications

Mice were immunized with Adenovirus expressing the H1-con, H2-con, H3-con and H5-con HA consensus genes in combination (multivalent) and compared to mice immunized with the traditional 2010–2011 FluZone and FluMist seasonal vaccines. Immunized mice were challenged with 10–100 MLD50 of H1N1, H3N1, H3N2 and H5N1 influenza viruses. The traditional vaccines induced robust levels of HA inhibition (HI) titers, but failed to protect against five different heterologous lethal influenza challenges. Conversely, the multivalent consensus vaccine (1 × 1010 virus particles (vp)/mouse) induced protective HI titers of ≥40 against 8 of 10 influenza viruses that represent a wide degree of divergence within …

Individual And Community Well-Being In Nonmetropolitan Nebraska: 2017 Nebraska Rural Poll Results, Rebecca J. Vogt, Cheryl A. Burkhart-Kriesel, Randolph L. Cantrell, Bradley Lubben, L. J. Mcelravy, T. L. Meyer

Rural Futures Institute: Publications

Conclusion

By many different measures, rural Nebraskans are positive about their community. Many rural Nebraskans rate their community favorably on its social dimensions: as friendly, trusting and supportive. Most rural Nebraskans say it would be difficult to leave their community and have a positive attachment to their community. And, most rural Nebraskans disagree that their community is powerless to control its future.

Across all years of this study, rural Nebraskans’ views about the change in their community have generally been positive. The proportion believing their community has changed for the better during the past year has usually been greater than …

Effectiveness Of Composting As A Biosecure Disposal Method For Porcine Epidemic Diarrhea Virus (Pedv)-Infected Pig Carcasses, Sarah Vitosh-Sillman, John Dustin Loy, Bruce Brodersen, Clayton Kelling, Kent M. Eskridge, Amy Millmier Schmidt

School of Veterinary and Biomedical Sciences: Faculty Publications

Porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDV) is an enteric disease of swine that has emerged as a worldwide threat to swine herd health and production. Substantial research has been conducted to assess viability of the virus on surfaces of vehicles and equipment, in feed and water, and on production building surfaces, but little is known about the persistence in PEDV-infected carcasses and effective disposal methods thereof. This study was conducted to quantify the persistence of PEDV RNA via quantitative real-time reverse transcription polymerase chain reaction (qRT-PCR) at various time-temperature combinations and in infected piglet carcasses subjected to composting. Although this method …

Georges Brossard, An Advocate For Insects, Stéphane Le Tirant, Brett C. Ratcliffe

Department of Entomology: Faculty Publications

People are strange. They’ve built botanical gardens for plants, planetariums for understanding the planets, zoos for large animals, aviaries for birds, and aquariums for fish, but nothing for insects! It’s as though this class of animals doesn’t count. And yet, of all the creatures on Earth, insects are some of the most important. They are food sources, garbage collectors, decomposers, producers, controllers and pollinators. And what do people do for them in return? We hunt them down with insecticides, pesticides, fungicides and herbicides. It’s time to reconcile humans with insects, a very classy class. I’m going to build a temple …

Stature, Body Mass, And Bmi In High School American Football Players: Appropriate Determinants Of Obesity Prevalence?, Alegra I. Mendez, Amelia A. Miramonti, Zachary M. Gillen, Brianna D. Mckay, Todd J. Leutzinger, Joel T. Cramer

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to evaluate stature (HT), weight (WT), body mass index (BMI), and obesity prevalence based on BMI categories in a large sample (n = 7,175) of high school American football players enrolled as freshmen, sophomores, or juniors. Players were categorized by their positions: offensive linemen (OL), defensive linemen (DL), tight end (TE), defensive end (DE), linebacker (LB), running back (RB), quarterback (QB), defensive back (DB), and wide receiver (WR). HT, WT, and BMI increased as grade increased among all positions. OL and DL had the greatest HT, WT, and BMI (p≤0.05). Obesity prevalence was greatest …

Risk Implications From The Selection Of Rainfall Index Insurance Intervals, Ashlee Carlson, Cory Walters, Kathleen Brooks, Monte Vandeveer, Jerry D. Volesky, Walt Schacht

Cornhusker Economics

Since the passage of the 1994 Crop Insurance Reform Act, the federal crop insurance program has grown in both size and scope. The program progressed from generating under $1 billion in premiums in 1994 to generating nearly $9.3 billion in 2016 (USDA-RMA 1994, 2016b). In 2007, the federal crop insurance program introduced the Rainfall Index (RI) and Vegetation Index (VI) Insurance Pilot Program for Pasture, Rangeland, and Forage (PRF) in selected states. In 2016, RI-PRF replaced VI-PRF and was made available in all 48 contiguous states enrolling 28,538 policies and providing over a billion dollars in coverage on more than …

Mitochondrial Reactive Oxygen Species In Lipotoxic Hearts Induces Post-Translational Modifications Of Akap121, Drp1 And Opa1 That Promote Mitochondrial Fission, Kensuke Tsushima, Heiko Bugger, Adam R. Wende, Jamie Soto, Gregory A. Jenson, Austin R. Tor, Rose Mcglauflin, Helena C. Kenny, Yuan Zhang, Rhonda Souvenir, Xiao X. Hu, Crystal L. Sloan, Renata O. Pereira, Vitor A. Lira, Kenneth W. Spitzer, Terry L. Sharp, Kooresh I. Shoghi, Genevieve C. Sparagna, Eva A. Rog-Zielinska, Peter Kohl, Oleh Khalimonchuk, Jean E. Schaffer, E. Dale Abel

Department of Biochemistry: Faculty Publications

Rationale: Cardiac lipotoxicity, characterized by increased uptake, oxidation and accumulation of lipid intermediates, contributes to cardiac dysfunction in obesity and diabetes. However, mechanisms linking lipid overload and mitochondrial dysfunction are incompletely understood.

Objective: To elucidate the mechanisms for mitochondrial adaptations to lipid overload in postnatal hearts in vivo.

Methods and Results: Using a transgenic mouse model of cardiac lipotoxicity overexpressing long-chain acyl-CoA synthetase 1 in cardiomyocytes, we show that modestly increased myocardial fatty acid uptake leads to mitochondrial structural remodeling with significant reduction in minimum diameter. This is associated with increased palmitoyl-carnitine oxidation and increased reactive oxygen species (ROS) generation …

Nebline, Nov./Dec. 2017

NEBLINE Newsletter Archive from Nebraska Extension in Lancaster County

Feature: 4-H’ers Grow Into True Leaders through Service

Food & Health

Farm & Acreage

Pests & Wildlife

Horticulture

Early Childhood

4-H & Youth

and other extension news and events

Evaluating Long-Term Direct And Correlated Selection Response In White Plymouth Rock Chickens Selected For High Or Low 8-Week Body Weight, Sylvia Harrison

Department of Animal Science: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The increasing demand for poultry meat has led animal breeders to engage in artificial selection of chickens as a way to increase the productivity of poultry. Long-term experiments have been designed to measure rates of genetic response to a trait under selection, and correlated traits, as well as gauge possible selection limits.

Two studies were conducted to evaluate response to selection for body weight (BW) in chickens. The chickens were selected for high or low BW at 8 weeks of age. Those that met the criterion were selected as parents for the subsequent generation. In the first study the population …

Hexapod Herald - Vol. 29, No. 5, November 2017

Hexapod Herald and Other Entomology Department Newsletters

Contents: Welcome - Congratulations - ESA National Annual Meeting News, November 5-8. 2017, Denver, CO - Student News - Faculty News - Publications - Blast from the Past - Meet an Online Student - Grants - BugFest 2017

Influence Of An Internal Parasite Control On Cattle Grazing Behavior And Production, Jace Stott

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Six herds of 45 to 90 cow/calf pairs grazing on upland range were used to examine the efficacy of an injectable extended release eprinomectin parasite control on production traits, activity behavior, and efficacy against internal parasitism. In 2016, treatment cows were given a subcutaneous injection of LongRange^tm. In 2017, all cows in the study were treated with a short acting Synanthic^tm treatment and only treatment cows were given an additional LongRange^tm treatment. In both 2016 and 2017, fecal egg counts were significantly lower (P < 0.05) in eprinomectin treated cows compared to control cows. Calf gains were 4.8 kg and 8.7 kg greater (P < 0.1) for the calves of dams treated with eprinomectin compared to calves of control cows in 2016 and 2017, respectively. Activity characteristics of cattle were inconclusive, with treated cows having lower (P < 0.01) grazing and traveling times compared to control cows in 2016, and more (P < 0.01) grazing and traveling in 2017.

Differences in grazing behaviors based on time within pasture at different times …

Econometric Estimation Of Groundwater Depth Change For The High Plains Aquifer, Jonathan R. Sims

Department of Agricultural Economics: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

This article presents a new method for estimating changes in depth to groundwater at a yearly, county level and incorporates these estimates as the dependent variable of econometric models for the High Plains aquifer. The High Plains (Ogallala) aquifer underlies eight states in the central United States and is the primary source of irrigation water for this large food producing region. The stock of groundwater is a finite, non-renewable resource with minimal recharge in most areas. Many fields of study, including hydrology and agricultural economics, are interested in depth to groundwater changes because they serve as a proxy for estimating …

New State Records For Nearctic False Click Beetles (Coleoptera: Eucnemidae), Robert L. Otto, Ken D. Karns

Insecta Mundi

New state records for 49 species of Eucnemidae (Coleoptera) are reported throughout the United States and a single species is newly reported from Utah. Diagnostic remarks are offered for Xylophilus crassicornis Muona and distributional observations are discussed for Dirrhagofarsus lewisi. The importance of retaining by-catch from statewide, regional, and national surveys for future studies is also discussed.

Over the last five years, opportunities were presented on many occasions to identify more than 1500 Eucnemidae from four private collections and eight institutional collections. Most of the specimens recently studied and identifi ed came from the Carnegie Museum of Natural History as …