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Full-Text Articles in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Compatibility Between Native Mississippi Ectomycorrhizal Fungi And Native And Exotic Pine Hosts: Testing For Specificity And The Potential For Rapid Evolution, Hailey A. Long
Honors Theses
Pines are highly invasive trees that are commonly used in pine plantations throughout the Southern Hemisphere. However, the survival and subsequent invasion of pines in exotic environments are dependent on the obligate symbiosis between ectomycorrhizal (ECM) fungi and pines. ECM fungi vary in host specificity and compatibility from pine-specialist species in the genus Suillus to broad generalists, such as species within the genera Pisolithus and Scleroderma. In Experiment 1, we sought to understand how the geographic origin of ECM fungi native to the southeastern United States and two pine species (native southeastern United States Pinus taeda and exotic Pinus …
Salinity Tolerance Of Gambusia Affinis, Sarah Rubelowsky
Salinity Tolerance Of Gambusia Affinis, Sarah Rubelowsky
Honors Theses
Developmental plasticity refers to changes during development as a result of environmental contributions. Salinity is a varying environmental condition in freshwater and estuarine habitats that can mediate developmental plasticity in Gambusia affinis, which can increase their tolerances as an invasive species. For my study, estuarine and freshwater populations of Gambusia affinis were sampled in March of 2017 using dip nets. Both populations were then brought back to the laboratory where pregnant females were acclimated to three different salinities (0‰, 15‰, 25‰) until they gave birth. I predicted that the estuarine population of Gambusia affinis would have a greater salinity tolerance …
Assessing Genetic Differentiation Among Populations Of The Invasive Plant Impatiens Glandulifera In Maine, Jordan R. Schoonover
Assessing Genetic Differentiation Among Populations Of The Invasive Plant Impatiens Glandulifera In Maine, Jordan R. Schoonover
Honors Theses
The annual herbaceous plant Impatiens glandulifera Royle is native to the Himalayas and is a significant invasive species in Europe. In the past century, it was introduced to the United States, where it has become established in 12 states. This study evaluated genetic differentiation among four Maine populations, to address a theory that posits hybridization of distinct lineages as a trigger for invasiveness. Regions of microsatellite repeats were evaluated at two polymorphic loci for 41 plants sampled from the four populations. A striking finding was that the observed heterozygosity was substantially higher than the heterozygosity expected from random combination of …