Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons^™

Hippopotamus (Hippopotamus Amphibius) Aggressive Behaviors In The Retima Hippo Pool, Orangi River, Tanzania, Lydia Hoffman, Connor Veldman

Celebrating Scholarship and Creativity Day (2018-)

Hippopotamuses (Hippopotamus amphibius) are known to forage on land during the night and spend the daytime in shallow pools to thermoregulate and to protect their skin from UV radiation. Daily use of pools may lead to competition for space and facilitate aggressive interactions between hippopotamuses. In this study, we looked at the difference in occurrence of aggressive behavior in the morning and evening hours between hippopotamuses (hippos). Our hypothesis was that hippos will be more aggressive at different times of the day, and we predicted that the higher aggressive activity will be in the morning hours, as hippos …

The Effect Of Light Availability On Planktonic Communities Under The Ice In Stumpf Lake, Samantha Schug

Celebrating Scholarship and Creativity Day (2018-)

Ice cover is a part of the yearly cycle in bodies of water that are exposed to temperatures below the freezing point. Though the body of water is completely covered, many communities under the ice are still present and active during this time. I hypothesized that as the area cleared of snow increased, the increased light availability under the ice will cause a decrease in zooplankton abundance, as they avoid light and increase the chlorophyll concentration. Three different light availabilities were imposed on the ice by clearing three different sized areas of snow on the ice (0m, 1m and 2m). …

The Legacy Of Natural Species And Substantial Form For Thomistic Evolution, James R. Hofmann

Forum Lectures

Exploration of theistic evolution within a Thomistic framework has taken on the label of Thomistic evolution. Although the conceptual boundaries of this approach are not precise, a historical trajectory of its scholastic methodology can be traced back to the views of Aquinas himself. An enduring central concept in this tradition has been the idea of substantial form. For Aquinas, distinct substantial forms were associated with the kinds of animals and plants that have no prior ancestry and are ascribed to God's production during the Genesis days of adornment. Later in the tradition, the early twentieth century Jesuit Erich Wasmann referred …

The Relationship Between Sex And Territorial Behavior In The San Cristóbal Lava Lizard (Microlophus Bivittatus), Meghan N. Koenig

All College Thesis Program, 2016-2019

The purpose of this study is to learn more about the territorial behavior of the San Cristóbal lava lizard (Microlophus bivittatus). It was hypothesized that, due to competition for mates, competition would be higher amid individuals of the same sex than between individuals that were opposite sexes. This hypothesis was not supported by the data collected, as females were observed interacting more with other females than other males but males were observed interacting more with females than other males. This is likely a result of a sex ratio of two females to one male and the territory structure of the …

Factors Affecting Tree Swallow (Tachycineta Bicolor) Nestling Resting Metabolic Rate, Brooke M. Piepenburg

All College Thesis Program, 2016-2019

Metabolism is the major force that maintains the most rudimentary of functions, and, therefore, maintains life in every organism. Because of the immense effect metabolism can have on an individual’s life history, it is key that the factors influencing metabolic rate are investigated. This study was designed to investigate the influential factors affecting Tree swallow, Tachycineta bicolor, nestling resting metabolic rates by observing maternal effects, early developmental conditions, age, and body mass in Tree swallow nestlings within collection sites at the Saint John’s Abbey Arboretum and Kraemer Lake-Wildwood County Park in Stearns County, Minnesota. Due to the fact that …

Analysis Of Sediment Reveals An Ecological "Regime Change" In Lake Hilary, Toni R. Gohman, Emily K. Kiolbasa

Celebrating Scholarship & Creativity Day (2011-2017)

Lake sediments contain excellent records of both fossils and component minerals that can be used to reconstruct regional ecological history. To complement ongoing studies of Lake Hilary’s pollen and macrofossils, we constructed a high-resolution record of the organic matter, carbonate, and non-carbonate mineral fractions of the lake’s sediment. The organic fraction is a proxy for the biological productivity of the pelagic, littoral, and shoreline of the lake. Non-carbonate minerals can evince erosion and subsequent aerial or fluvial deposition. Carbonate deposition can be related to lake productivity and chemical weathering in the surrounding watershed. We sought to compare our sediment record …

Sink Or Ecological Trap For Tree Swallows In Central Minnesota?, James T. Pathoulas, Nicole E. Noyes

Celebrating Scholarship & Creativity Day (2011-2017)

Background: An ecological trap is typically defined as a low-quality habitat, incapable of sustaining a population, which is preferred over a high quality habitat. Ecological traps may lead to species extinction in populations with 1) strict habitat requirements 2) minimal information about the habitat, and 3) low population size. Tree Swallows (Tachycineta bicolor) meet the former two of these criteria.

Methods: We monitored Tree Swallow (TS) nest boxes (n=90) at two ecologically similar sites A and B with similar occupancy rates. Site B has lower reproductive fitness —suggestive of an ecological trap. Binary logistic regression was used to …

A Hands-On Activity To Introduce The Effects Of Transmission By An Invasive Species, Barbara May

Biology Faculty Publications

This activity engages students to better understand the impact of transmission by invasive species. Using dice, poker chips, and paper plates, an entire class mimics the spread of an invasive species within a geographic region. The activity can be modified and conducted at the K-16 levels.

Heavy Metal Chemistry Of Sediments In Caves Of The Springfield Plateau, Missouri-Arkansas-Oklahoma: A Link To Subterranean Biodiversity, Travis M. Doughty, Aaron W. Johnson

The Compass: Earth Science Journal of Sigma Gamma Epsilon

We used X-ray fluorescence (XRF) to compare the heavy metal chemistry of sediments in caves in rural and urban areas to the chemistry of sediments from a control cave in a relatively undisturbed watershed in the Springfield (MO) Plateau. Sediment from Smallin Cave near Ozark, MO, the control cave, has the smallest peak sizes for Zn and Mn and a moderately-sized Pb peak. Sediment from the rural cave exhibited larger peaks of Zn and Mn and a smaller Pb peak. Sediment from the urban cave had the largest Zn, Mn and Pb peaks. Interestingly, smaller peak sizes appear to correlate …

Quantitative Acoustic Analysis Of The Vocal Repertoire Of The Golden Rocket Frog (Anomaloglossus Beebei), Beth A. Pettitt, Godfrey R. Bourne, Mark A. Bee

Biology Faculty Publications

This study describes the vocal repertoire of the Guyanan golden rocket frog, Anomaloglossus beebei, a bromeliad specialist with biparental care. Using multivariate analyses of nine call properties, as well as the occurrence of nonlinear phenomena, three signal types were distinguished—advertisement, courtship, and aggressive calls. Although all three call types were composed of a short series of rapidly repeated pulses, advertisement calls were produced at higher amplitudes and had longer pulse durations than both courtship calls and aggressive calls. Courtship calls exhibited lower dominant frequencies than both advertisement and aggressive calls, which had similar dominant frequencies. Aggressive calls had more …

A Research Agenda For Political Personality And Leadership Studies: An Evolutionary Proposal, Aubrey Immelman, Theodore Millon

Psychology Faculty Publications

Despite major neuroscientific advances in the past two decades and parallel conceptual refinement in evolutionary theory, personality-in-politics inquiry remains adrift, divorced from these broader spheres of scientific knowledge. This paper reviews the neurobiological substrates of three major domains of evolutionary biology and behavioral ecology relevant to political personality assessment and the psychological examination of political leaders; furnishes a context and set of guiding ideas to revitalize the study of the person as biopsychosocial entity in politics; advances a generative theory of personality and political leadership performance; and proposes an agenda for advancing personality-in-politics and leadership inquiry, informed by insights derived …

Augustine On Environment: Abiding In The Tranquility Of Order, Edward Horski

School of Theology and Seminary Graduate Papers/Theses

No abstract provided.

Phylogenetic Reanalysis Of Strauch's Osteological Data Set For The Charadriiformes, Philip C. Chu

Biology Faculty Publications

Strauch's (1978) compatibility analysis of relationships among the shorebirds (Charadriiformes) was the first study to examine the full range of charadriiform taxa in a reproducible way. Subsequently Mickevich and Parenti (1980) leveled serious charges against Strauch's characters, method of phylogenetic inference, and results. To account for these charges, Strauch's characters were re-examined and recoded, and parsimony analyses were performed on the revised matrix. A parsimony analysis on 74 taxa from the revised matrix yielded 855 shortest trees, each length = 286 and consistency index = 0.385. In each shortest tree there were two major lineages, a lineage of sandpiper-like birds …

Sex And Extinction, Jennifer M. Eckman

Honors Theses, 1963-2015

Sexual reproduction, the process of generating offspring through genetic recombination, is viewed as evolutionarily advantageous to a population by enabling it to respond more readily to environmental change. Support of this hypothesis comes from the observation that the majority of species employ some mode of sexual reproduction. Asexual reproduction is relatively rare, suggesting that these species reduce their chances of survival. This project examines some of the parameters that relate to a population's ability to respond to its environment. Using a program coded in FORTRAN, a Monte Carlo model has been developed to test the role of recombination on population …