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Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons

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Full-Text Articles in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology

Does A Carbonatite Deposit Influence Its Surrounding Ecosystem?, James M.C. Jones, Elizabeth A. Webb, Michael D.J. Lynch, Trevor C. Charles, Pedro M. Antunes, Frédérique C. Guinel Aug 2019

Does A Carbonatite Deposit Influence Its Surrounding Ecosystem?, James M.C. Jones, Elizabeth A. Webb, Michael D.J. Lynch, Trevor C. Charles, Pedro M. Antunes, Frédérique C. Guinel

Biology Faculty Publications

Carbonatites are unusual alkaline rocks with diverse compositions. Although previous work has characterized the effects these rocks have on soils and plants, little is known about their impacts on local ecosystems. Using a deposit within the Great Lakes–St. Lawrence forest in northern Ontario, Canada, we investigated the effect of a carbonatite on soil chemistry and on the structure of plant and soil microbial communities. This was done using a vegetation survey conducted above and around the deposit, with corresponding soil samples collected for determining soil nutrient composition and for assessing microbial community structure using 16S/ITS Illumina Mi-Seq sequencing. In some …


Sex Ratio Bias And Extinction Risk In An Isolated Population Of Tuatara (Sphenodon Punctatus), Kristine L. Grayson, Nicola J. Mitchell, Joanne M. Monks, Susan N. Keall, Joanna N. Wilson, Nicola J. Nelson Apr 2014

Sex Ratio Bias And Extinction Risk In An Isolated Population Of Tuatara (Sphenodon Punctatus), Kristine L. Grayson, Nicola J. Mitchell, Joanne M. Monks, Susan N. Keall, Joanna N. Wilson, Nicola J. Nelson

Biology Faculty Publications

Understanding the mechanisms underlying population declines is critical for preventing the extinction of endangered populations. Positive feedbacks can hasten the process of collapse and create an ‘extinction vortex,’ particularly in small, isolated populations. We provide a case study of a male-biased sex ratio creating the conditions for extinction in a natural population of tuatara (Sphenodon punctatus) on North Brother Island in the Cook Strait of New Zealand. We combine data from long term mark-recapture surveys, updated model estimates of hatchling sex ratio, and population viability modeling to measure the impacts of sex ratio skew. Results from the mark-recapture …


Horseshoe Crab Spawning Survey Protocol, Jennifer Mattei Jan 2009

Horseshoe Crab Spawning Survey Protocol, Jennifer Mattei

Biology Faculty Publications

The protocol lists supplies and clothing needed for the survey, as well as which data is to be collected and when and how it should be entered for the census of horseshoe crabs on the Recapture Data Sheet for 2009. Adopted from Cape Cod and Delaware Bay survey protocols.


2005 Virginia Wildflower Of The Year: Bloodroot, Sanguinaria Canadensis, W. John Hayden Jan 2005

2005 Virginia Wildflower Of The Year: Bloodroot, Sanguinaria Canadensis, W. John Hayden

Biology Faculty Publications

Bloodroot is an herbaceous perennial that grows from a persistent, branched underground stem or rhizome. Early each spring, while the forest canopy is still bare, each well-developed rhizome tip produces one leaf and one flower stalk. The leaf is kidney-shaped in its overall outline, but it is also divided into a pattern of rounded lobes and sinuses, rendering a complex overall shape. At flowering time, bloodroot leaves form a loose vertically-oriented collar around the flower stalk with the bluish-green lower leaf surface forming the outside of the collar; as the season progresses, the leaves open flat and expand to their …