Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Life Sciences Commons

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Articles 1 - 13 of 13

Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Preliminary Analysis Of The Effects Of Non-Target Supplemental Feeding On Camera Trap Captures Of Small Mammals In Central Georgia, Raena Mccown, Travis Cunningham, Alfred J. Mead Dec 2022

Preliminary Analysis Of The Effects Of Non-Target Supplemental Feeding On Camera Trap Captures Of Small Mammals In Central Georgia, Raena Mccown, Travis Cunningham, Alfred J. Mead

Georgia Journal of Science

Supplemental bird feeding is a widespread hobby throughout western culture. Although it brings joy to many people, bird feeding has been shown to have potentially negative effects on local bird populations and small mammalian species. To study the differences in local occurrence of native small mammalian species around bird feeders and in more distant settings, six camera traps were placed in a rural residential area in Putnam County, Georgia. Three cameras were placed facing bird feeders and three placed a minimum of 60 m away from the feeders. Species presence was recorded three days a week from 12:00 am Monday …


Estimating The Size Of Georgia's Resident Canada Goose Population, Gregory D. Balkcom Feb 2021

Estimating The Size Of Georgia's Resident Canada Goose Population, Gregory D. Balkcom

Georgia Journal of Science

Canada geese (Branta canadensis) are an important waterfowl species in Georgia, and are hunted across the state. To meet management objectives, managers need to understand the impacts of hunting regulations on the population of interest. Therefore, reliable population estimates are necessary. Population size can be estimated by various methods, including aerial surveys, ground surveys, or population indices such as the Lincoln Estimator. I used annual estimates of resident Canada goose harvest in Georgia from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Harvest Information Program along with banding and recovery data from the Bird Banding Laboratory in a bias-adjusted version …


Solar Eclipse Has Little Discernible Effect On Bat Activity, Michael J. Bender, Sara Robertson Jul 2019

Solar Eclipse Has Little Discernible Effect On Bat Activity, Michael J. Bender, Sara Robertson

Georgia Journal of Science

N/A - Research Note


Enumeration And Identification Of Selected Bacteria In Water Samples From The Alapahoochee River System, Jenifer Turco Ph.D., James A. Nienow Jul 2017

Enumeration And Identification Of Selected Bacteria In Water Samples From The Alapahoochee River System, Jenifer Turco Ph.D., James A. Nienow

Georgia Journal of Science

Escherichia coli and enterococci were enumerated in water collected biweekly for one year at ten stations in the Alapahoochee River system. The concentrations of E.coli were usually below a standard of 576 colony forming units (cfu) per 100 ml, except after heavy rain. At five stations the concentrations of enterococci were gener­ally above a standard of 151 cfu/100 ml. Concentrations of both groups showed a direct but weak correlation with pH. For quality control, 772 colonies typical of E. coli and 773 colonies typical of enterococcus were tested by the appropriate verification procedures. Sixty-six (8.5%) of the former, and 57 …


Corrections For Identification Of Mature Larvae Of Rhantus Calidus (Fabricius) And Hoperius Planatus Fall (Coleoptera: Dytiscidae) In Georgia, E. H. Barman, B. R. Lemieux, B. P. White Jul 2017

Corrections For Identification Of Mature Larvae Of Rhantus Calidus (Fabricius) And Hoperius Planatus Fall (Coleoptera: Dytiscidae) In Georgia, E. H. Barman, B. R. Lemieux, B. P. White

Georgia Journal of Science

Characters for identification of mature larvae of Rhantus calidus and Hoperius planatus in Georgia are evaluated and critiqued. Ma­ture larvae of R. calidus have only eight cereal sensilla (setae) while those of Hoperius have numerous medial and lateral sensilla. This is presented as an obvious and reliable character set for identification of R. calidus and H. planatus in Georgia.


Correlation Of Sex, Age, And Body Mass With Hoof Size In White-Tailed Deer From The Piedmont Wildlife Refuge, Georgia, Ben Batchelor, Alfred J. Mead Jul 2017

Correlation Of Sex, Age, And Body Mass With Hoof Size In White-Tailed Deer From The Piedmont Wildlife Refuge, Georgia, Ben Batchelor, Alfred J. Mead

Georgia Journal of Science

The distal forelimbs and mandibles of 157 white-tailed deer (Odo­coileus virginianus) harvested during the 2001 fall hunting season on the Piedmont National Wildlife Refuge, Georgia, were used to explore the osteometric correlation of sex, age, and body mass with hoof size. The width of the right front, medial unguis and the linear distance from the tip of the dew-claw to the tip of the medial unguis were used as measures of hoof size. Linear regressions were calcu­lated for each osteometric parameter for each sex individually and for the sexes combined. Regression R2-values suggest that hoof width …


Reptiles And Amphibians Of Boy Scout Camp Linwood-Hayne: Results From An Undergraduate-Initiated Three Year Opportunistic Inventory, Thomas M. Luhring Jul 2017

Reptiles And Amphibians Of Boy Scout Camp Linwood-Hayne: Results From An Undergraduate-Initiated Three Year Opportunistic Inventory, Thomas M. Luhring

Georgia Journal of Science

An inventory of the reptiles and amphibians of Boy Scout Camp Linwood-Hayne, Richmond County, Georgia, was compiled over a period of three years (2003-2005). Interpretation of range maps indicated that a total of 102 species could possibly occur on the property. State records indicate that a total of 98 species are docu­mented in Richmond County. Sixty-two species were recorded from a combination of passive sampling traps, hand-captures, sightings, egg masses, and vocalizations. This study demonstrates that student-led opportunistic surveys can be successful and cost effective vehicles for creating baseline inventories of small areas.


Effects Of Hydrilla Control On Wintering Waterfowl At Lake Seminole, Georgia, Gregory D. Balkcom, Donald M. Morgan Jun 2017

Effects Of Hydrilla Control On Wintering Waterfowl At Lake Seminole, Georgia, Gregory D. Balkcom, Donald M. Morgan

Georgia Journal of Science

Hydrilla (Hydrilla verticillata) is an exotic, submergent plant that clogs waterways in the southeastern United States yet appears to be beneficial to migratory waterfowl. We studied the effects of hydrilla control on wintering waterfowl populations at Lake Seminole, GA. We applied fluridone (Sonar®) in a low-dose injection system starting May 2000 in the Spring Creek arm of the reservoir. We used aerial photography and ground-truthing methods to quantify coverage of vegetation types and open water pre- and post-treatment for the entire reservoir. We flew weekly aerial surveys to document waterfowl numbers and distribution across the reservoir …


Tardigrades From Fayette County, Georgia, Juliana G. Hinton, Harry A. Meyer Jun 2017

Tardigrades From Fayette County, Georgia, Juliana G. Hinton, Harry A. Meyer

Georgia Journal of Science

Only three species from the phylum Tardigrada have been reported in Georgia. Samples of leaf litter and cryptogams collected in 2003 in Fayette County, Georgia, were examined for the presence of tardigrades. Diphascon (Diphascon) pinque, Macrobiotus coronatus, Macrobiotus harmsworthii, Macrobiotus hibiscus, Macrobiotus richtersi, Minibiotus furcatus, Minibiotus intermedius, Isohypsibius nodosus, and Milnesium tardigradum were present in the samples. All nine are additions to the fauna of Georgia.


Whitetail Deer Carrying Capacity At A Georgia Barrier Island, R. Deffendall, A. Storie, J. Weimer, C. W. Belin Jun 2017

Whitetail Deer Carrying Capacity At A Georgia Barrier Island, R. Deffendall, A. Storie, J. Weimer, C. W. Belin

Georgia Journal of Science

Whitetail deer (Odocoileus virginianus) populations of several islands along the Georgia coast have appeared to be in declining health for the past 10 years. Several explanations for this phenomenon have been proposed; however, several researchers have alluded to the over-population of the species. We calculated the carrying capacity of the Skidaway Island State Park (SISP), a portion of Skidaway Island located near the coastal City of Savannah. By determining the amount of biomass produced by several habitats located within the park, and knowing the hectares of these habitats, the total amount of biomass was calculated. Using the caloric …


A Redescription Of The First Instar Of Rhantus Calidus (Fabricius) (Coleoptera: Dytiscidae) With Notes On Its Biology, B. R. Lemieux, E. H. Barman, B. P. White Jun 2017

A Redescription Of The First Instar Of Rhantus Calidus (Fabricius) (Coleoptera: Dytiscidae) With Notes On Its Biology, B. R. Lemieux, E. H. Barman, B. P. White

Georgia Journal of Science

First instars of Rhantus calidus (Fabricius) representing a Georgia population are described and illustrated. Dimensions are provided along with an analysis of the primary chaetotaxy of legs, head, and last abdominal segment. The presence of first instars at the study site demonstrated that R. calidus either requires or is at least tolerant of warmer temperatures for completion of its life cycle. Habitats with temperatures comparable to this site were likely present in a warm Atlantic coastal enclave during the last glacial maximum (LGM), making it probable that the LGM dytiscid fauna of Georgia included R. calidus.


Thirty-Year Case Study Showing A Negative Relationship Between Population And Reproductive Indices Of Eastern Wild Turkeys In Georgia, Bobby T. Bond, Gregory D. Balkom, Christopher D. Baumann, D. Kevin Lowrey Jun 2017

Thirty-Year Case Study Showing A Negative Relationship Between Population And Reproductive Indices Of Eastern Wild Turkeys In Georgia, Bobby T. Bond, Gregory D. Balkom, Christopher D. Baumann, D. Kevin Lowrey

Georgia Journal of Science

Some Eastern wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo silvestris) studies have interpreted low reproductive success in an established population as support for the idea that as populations stabilize reproduction decreases. However, no study has previously documented a negative relationship between population size and reproductive success for the wild turkey. Thus, we examined the hypothesis that reproduction (poults/hen) decreased as population size (turkeys seen/hour) increased in Georgia. Using 30 years of data collected by two independent survey methods, linear regression analysis indicated a negative relationship between population size and reproduction (r2 = 0.6389, P ≤ 0.001) for wild turkeys in …


Food Of Bobcats And Coyotes From Cumberland Island, Camden County, Georgia, John O. Whitaker Jr., Carol Ruckdeschel, Angela Chamberlain, Lauren Bakken Jan 2015

Food Of Bobcats And Coyotes From Cumberland Island, Camden County, Georgia, John O. Whitaker Jr., Carol Ruckdeschel, Angela Chamberlain, Lauren Bakken

Georgia Journal of Science

Fifty scats of bobcats and 105 scats of coyotes from Cumberland Island, Camden County, Georgia, were examined during this study. Major foods of bobcats were mammals (81.8% volume), followed by birds (13.8%) and vegetation (4.2%), with only 0.2% invertebrates. Major foods of coyotes were plant materials (46.6% volume), mammals (43.8%), and invertebrates (6.0%). This is apparently the first report of coyote foods from Cumberland Island.