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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Fates Of Ovules In Groundplum Milk-Vetch (Astragalus Crassicarpus Nutt.) In South Dakota, Arvid Boe, Paul J. Johnson Jan 2017

Fates Of Ovules In Groundplum Milk-Vetch (Astragalus Crassicarpus Nutt.) In South Dakota, Arvid Boe, Paul J. Johnson

Native Plant Focused Publications

Groundplum milk-vetch (Astragalus crassicarpus Nutt.) is a native legume found on gravelly to sandy prairie uplands throughout central North America. The large and fleshy fruits, or pods, of this species were consumed by indigenous people and European settlers, and are cached by rodents. Our previous research on native legumes of the northern Great Plains indicated seed predation by insects, notably bruchid beetles belonging to the genus Acanthoscelides Schilsky, was a dominant factor determining viable seed production in natural and artificial plant assemblages. However, although we have studied the reproductive biology of several species of Astragalus L., none had fleshy pods. …


The Cattle Dung Arthropod Community In Eastern South Dakota: Their Colonization, Impact On Degradation, And Response To Rangeland Management, Jacob Pecenka Jan 2017

The Cattle Dung Arthropod Community In Eastern South Dakota: Their Colonization, Impact On Degradation, And Response To Rangeland Management, Jacob Pecenka

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Cattle grazing operations are an important industry throughout the world and a vital component of the economy of the Northern Great Plains. Rangeland management is important to ensure that cattle grazing remains not only profitable but also environmentally sustainable. Conventionally managed rangeland systems that practice continuous grazing and repeated applications of chemicals such as avermectins pose a risk to the continuing productivity of rangelands. These practices have ecological consequences, primarily to the arthropod community that inhabits cattle dung pats. This diverse community works together to recycle dung pats and make the nutrients in dung accessible to the surrounding plant community, …


Interactive Effects Of Cover Crops, Invertebrate Communities And Soil Health In Corn Production Systems, Claire Lacanne Jan 2017

Interactive Effects Of Cover Crops, Invertebrate Communities And Soil Health In Corn Production Systems, Claire Lacanne

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The adoption of regenerative farming practices is gaining traction, but the costs and benefits are not often considered on a systems level. Encouraging biodiversity and soil health is the goal of many agricultural practices used in regenerative farming; regenerative systems employ practices which abide by the two main principles of increasing biodiversity and decreasing disturbance, with the goal of encouraging ecosystem functioning to minimize inputs and maximize the productivity of a farm. I examined the management of corn (Zea mays) fields across four states in the Upper Midwest region of the United States. Regenerative systems in this study …


A Survey Of Non-Crop Plants As Alternative Hosts To Raspberries For Drosophila Suzukii (Spotted Wing Drosophila), Bennur Agbaba Jan 2017

A Survey Of Non-Crop Plants As Alternative Hosts To Raspberries For Drosophila Suzukii (Spotted Wing Drosophila), Bennur Agbaba

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The spotted wing fruit fly (SWD), Drosophila suzukii (Matsumura) (Diptera: Drosophilidae), is a pest of small fruit crops. Unlike most other Drosophila species, this insect can oviposit into ripe fruits, rendering them unmarketable. Drosophila suzukii is spreading quickly throughout the continental United States including South Dakota, and causing serious damage to horticultural crops, particularly those within the fruit industry. This study determines the D. suzukii host plant both commercial crops and native plants, and defines non-crop host plants by season in South Dakota. Further, it confirms the occurrence of the fly in southeastern South Dakota and identifies high-risk infestation areas …