Life Sciences Commons^™

The Effects Of Diet And Mating System On Reproductive (And Post‐Reproductive) Life Span In A Freshwater Snail, Josh R. Auld

Biology Faculty Publications

The length of the reproductive life span, along with the number/frequency/magnitude of reproductive events, quantifies an individual’s potential contribution to the next generation. By examining reproductive life span, and distinguishing it from somatic life span, we gain insight into critical aspects of an individual’s potential fitness as well as reproductive and somatic senescence. Additionally, differentiating somatic and reproductive life spans can provide insight into the existence of a post‐reproductive period and factors that shape its duration. Given the known importance of diet and mating system on resource allocation, I reared individual freshwater snails (Physa acuta) from 22 full‐sib families under …

Complexity Is Complicated And So Too Is Comparing Complexity Metrics—A Response To Mikula Et Al. (2018), William D. Pearse, Ignacio Morales-Castilla, Logan S. James, Maxwell Farrell, Frédéric Boivin, T. Jonathan Davies

Ecology Center Publications

In a recent publication (Pearse et al. 2018b), we explored the macroevolution and macroecology of passerine song using a large citizen science database of bird songs and powerful machine learning tools. Mikula et al. (2018) examine a small subset (

Thermal Physiology And Developmental Plasticity Of Pigmentation In The Harlequin Bug (Hemiptera: Pentatomidae), Carly D. Sibilia, Kelly A. Brosko, Christopher J. Hickling, Lily M. Thompson, Kristine L. Grayson, Jennifer R. Olson

Biology Faculty Publications

Traits that promote the maintenance of body temperatures within an optimal range provide advantages to ectothermic species. Pigmentation plasticity is found in many insects and enhances thermoregulatory potential as increased melanization can result in greater heat retention. The thermal melanism hypothesis predicts that species with developmental plasticity will have darker pigmentation in colder environments, which can be an important adaptation for temperate species experiencing seasonal variation in climate. The harlequin bug (Murgantia histrionica, Hemiptera: Pentatomidae, Hahn 1834) is a widespread invasive crop pest with variable patterning where developmental plasticity in melanization could affect performance. To investigate the impact of temperature …

Morphological Variation In The Genus Chlorocebus: Ecogeographic And Anthropogenically Mediated Variation In Body Mass, Postcranial Morphology, And Growth, Trudy R. Turner, Christopher A. Schmitt, Jennifer Danzy Cramer, Joseph Lorenz, J. Paul Grobler, Clifford J. Jolly, Nelson B. Freimer

All Faculty Scholarship for the College of the Sciences

Objectives

Direct comparative work in morphology and growth on widely dispersed wild primate taxa is rarely accomplished, yet critical to understanding ecogeographic variation, plastic local variation in response to human impacts, and variation in patterns of growth and sexual dimorphism. We investigated population variation in morphology and growth in response to geographic variables (i.e., latitude, altitude), climatic variables (i.e., temperature and rainfall), and human impacts in the vervet monkey (Chlorocebus spp.).

Methods

We trapped over 1,600 wild vervets from across Sub‐Saharan Africa and the Caribbean, and compared measurements of body mass, body length, and relative thigh, leg, and foot …

Morph-Specific Patterns Of Reproductive Senescence: Connections To Discrete Reproductive Strategies, A. S. Grunst, M. L. Grunst, Vincent A. Formica, M. L. Korody, A. M. Betuel, M. Barcelo-Serra, S. Ford, R. A. Gonser, E. M. Tuttle

Biology Faculty Works

How reproductive strategies contribute to patterns of senescence in natural populations remains contentious. We studied reproductive senescence in the dimorphic white-throated sparrow, an excellent species for exploring this issue. Within both sexes the morphs use distinct reproductive strategies, and disassortative pairing by morph results in pair types with distinct parental systems. White morph birds are more colorful and aggressive than tan counterparts, and white males compete for extrapair matings, whereas tan males are more parental. Tan males and white females share parental care equally, whereas white males provide little parental support to tan females. We found morph-specific patterns of reproductive …

Breeding Season Ecology And Demography Of Lesser Scaup (Aythya Affinis) At Red Rock Lakes National Wildlife Refuge, Jeffrey M. Warren

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

It is hypothesized that individuals make reproductive decisions based on current assessments of their physiological condition and environmental conditions. For female lesser scaup (Aythya affinis), breeding occurs after an energetically costly spring migration. Increasing fat reserves (i.e., ‘body condition’) prior to breeding allows a female to produce a larger clutch of eggs, but time spent gaining body condition is costly in terms of time allowed to raise ducklings before freezing conditions in the fall. In Chapter 2 I explored rate of pre-breeding body condition gain in female lesser scaup, and how that rate influenced clutch size. Spring phenology, …

Tgf-Β2 In Human Milk Research: Exploration Of A New Field Methodology And New Findings Of Biosimilar Tgf-Β2 In Non-Human Milk, Chlöe A. Sweetman

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Objectives: There are three aims for this thesis: the first is to develop a field and laboratory protocol for the storage and analysis of transforming growth factor–beta 2 (TGF-β2) in human breastmilk; second, to validate this protocol and the immunoassay used to assess this new method; and lastly, to explore the ramifications of biosimilar TGF-β2 across multiple milks on human health, growth, and immunity through the review of laboratory findings and previous literature.

Rational: Little anthropological research has been done on TGF-β2 in human milk. Anthropology as a discipline is well positioned to provide insight into TGF-β2, combining biocultural, evolutionary, …

Diurnal And Developmental Differences In Gene Expression Between Adult Dispersing And Flightless Morphs Of The Wing Polymorphic Cricket, Gryllus Firmus: Implications For Life-History Evolution, Anthony J. Zera, Neetha Nanoth Vellichirammal, Jennifer A. Brisson

Anthony Zera Publications

The functional basis of life history adaptation is a key topic of research in life history evolution. Studies of wing polymorphism in the cricket Gryllus firmus have played a prominent role in this field. However, prior in-depth investigations of morph specialization have primarily focused on a single hormone, juvenile hormone, and a single aspect of intermediary metabolism, the fatty-acid biosynthetic component of lipid metabolism. Moreover, the role of diurnal variation in life history adaptation in G. firmus has been understudied, as is the case for organisms in general. Here, we identify genes whose expression differs consistently between the …

Global Macroevolution And Macroecology Of Passerine Song, William D. Pearse, Ignacio Morales-Castilla, Logan S. James, Maxwell Farrell, Frédéric Boivin, T. Jonathan Davies

Ecology Center Publications

Studying the macroevolution of the songs of Passeriformes (perching birds) has proved challenging. The complexity of the task stems not just from the macroevolutionary and macroecological challenge of modeling so many species, but also from the difficulty in collecting and quantifying birdsong itself. Using machine learning techniques, we extracted songs from a large citizen science dataset, and then analyzed the evolution, and biotic and abiotic predictors of variation in birdsong across 578 passerine species. Contrary to expectations, we found few links between life‐history traits (monogamy and sexual dimorphism) and the evolution of song pitch (peak frequency) or song complexity (standard …

Preliminary Age Estimates For Female Southern Stingrays (Hypanus Americanus) From Southwestern Florida, Usa, Abigail H.P. Hayne, Gregg R. Poulakis, Jason C. Seitz, James A. Sulikowski

Gulf and Caribbean Research

No abstract provided.

Notes On The Natural History Of Enaphalodes Archboldi Lingafelter And Chemsak, 2002 And E. Bingkirki Lingafelter And Santos-Silva, 2018 (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae), Josef Vlasak

Insecta Mundi

The life history of Enaphalodes archboldi Lingafelter and Chemsak (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae) is described in detail based on observations from Marion County, Florida. Notes on the life history of Enaphalodes bingkirki Lingafelter and Santos-Silva from Honduras are also provided. Enaphalodes bingkirki is reported from Honduras for the first time.

Uncovering The Variable Life History Traits And Strategies Of The Gregarine Parasite, Monocystis Perplexa, In Its Invasive Earthworm Host, Amynthas Agrestis, Erin L. Keller

Graduate College Dissertations and Theses

Parasite life histories influence many aspects of infection dynamics, from the parasite infrapopulation diversity to the fitness of the parasite (the number of successfully transmitted parasites). Studies of medically important parasites, such as the parasite responsible for malaria (Plasmodium spp.), demonstrate the usefulness of investigating the life histories of parasites to better understand infection characteristics such as parasite load and probability of transmission.

The gregarines are a diverse group of apicomplexan parasites that infect invertebrates, and are particularly common in insects and annelids. Given the great biodiversity and importance of their hosts, coupled with their close evolutionary relationship with important …