Other Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons^™

Courtship Behavior, Communication, And Copulation In Tigrosa Annexa, Samuel White

Scholars Week

The evolution of multimodal communication, where signalers use multiple signal components in multiple sensory modalities, has become the subject of investigation by many researchers. Signaling puts males at risk of predation, so why do males of some species evolve extra signals that may increase this risk? In some wolf spider species, males incorporate many visual and vibrational signals into a display that they use to attract a female for mating. Female spiders are often aggressive toward courting males and so the male display also functions to decrease the odds of cannibalism. Female wandering spiders deposit silk containing pheromones that communicate …

No Evidence For Kin Protection In The Expression Of Sickness Behaviors In House Mice, Patricia C. Lopes, Per Block, Alice Pontiggia, Anna K. Lindholm, Barbara König

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

When infected, animals change their behaviors in several ways, including by decreasing their activity, their food and water intake, and their interest in social interactions. These behavioral alterations are collectively called sickness behaviors and, for several decades, the main hypotheses put forward to explain this phenomenon were that engaging in sickness behaviors facilitated the fever response and improved the likelihood of host survival. However, a new hypothesis was recently proposed suggesting that engaging in sickness behaviors may serve to protect kin. We tested this kin protection hypothesis by combining a field and a laboratory experiment in house mice. In both …

Spatial And Temporal Patterns Of Neutral And Adaptive Genetic Variation In The Alpine Butterfly, Parnassius Smintheus, Maryam Jangjoo

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Understanding how much genetic diversity exists in populations, and the processes that maintain that diversity, has been a central focus of population genetics. The evolutionary processes that determine patterns of genetic diversity depend on underlying ecological processes such as dispersal and changes in population size. In this thesis, I examine the influence of dispersal and population dynamics on neutral and adaptive genetic variation in a naturally occurring network of populations of the alpine butterfly, Parnassius smintheus.

My first objective was to determine the combined consequences of demographic bottlenecks and dispersal on neutral genetic variation within and among populations. Using …

Embryonic Origin And Genetic Basis Of Cave Associated Phenotypes In The Isopod Crustacean Asellus Aquaticus., Hafasa Mojaddidi, Franco Fernandez, Priscilla A. Erickson, Meredith E. Protas

Natural Sciences and Mathematics | Faculty Scholarship

Characteristics common to animals living in subterranean environments include the reduction or absence of eyes, lessened pigmentation and enhanced sensory systems. How these characteristics have evolved is poorly understood for the majority of cave dwelling species. In order to understand the evolution of these changes, this study uses an invertebrate model system, the freshwater isopod crustacean, Asellus aquaticus, to examine whether adult differences between cave and surface dwelling individuals first appear during embryonic development. We hypothesized that antennal elaboration, as well as eye reduction and pigment loss, would be apparent during embryonic development. We found that differences in pigmentation, eye …

The Paradoxical Giant Hummingbird: Comparison Of Andean And Coastal Subspecies With Respect To Blood, Migration, And Genes, Jessie L. Williamson

Shared Knowledge Conference

The Giant Hummingbird (Patagona gigas) is twice as large as the next largest hummingbird species and has long been considered paradoxical with respect to flight biomechanics. It is also an extreme outlier in other respects. For example, it is the only hummingbird species that breeds above 4,000 m elevation and also along the beaches of the Pacific Ocean. The high Andean populations of Giant Hummingbird (P. g. peruviana) that we have studied previously have a beta-hemoglobin genotype (serine at beta-hemoglobin A positions 13 and 83) that is characterized by high O2-affinity and is only shared with four unrelated hummingbird taxa …

Modeling The Abundance And Distribution Of Terrestrial Plants Through Space And Time, Caroline Curtis

Doctoral Dissertations

Anthropogenically-driven changes threaten ecosystems and species over regional to global scales. I addressed several questions related to how species ranges will respond to these changes over large spatial and temporal extents to better understand what determines where a species occurs. First, I modeled presence and abundance of two widespread invasive plants in the southwest U.S. under current and projected future climatic conditions, from which I inferred impact risk. These results provide more insight than presence modeling alone and highlight the possibility of increased invasion pressure in the future. Second, I tested the assumption that expert-based climatic tolerance data will better …

Not Gone With The Wind: Addressing Effects Of Offshore Wind Development On Bat Species In The Northeastern United States, Zara Rae Dowling

Doctoral Dissertations

Development of coastal and offshore wind energy resources has the potential to add considerable renewable electricity capacity to the United States electrical grid, but could have detrimental impacts on wildlife. Land-based wind energy facilities are estimated to kill hundreds of thousands of bats every year in the United States, and could threaten population viability of some species. Little is known about the potential impacts of offshore wind development on bat populations along the North Atlantic coast, but a number of species are known to frequent marine islands or fly over the ocean during migration. This dissertation helps to characterize risks …

Examining Patterns In Nest Predation Using Artificial Nests, Victoria L. Simonsen

School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

The use of artificial nests to study the predation of avian nests has faced disregard by ecologists due to inconsistencies found between the survival rates of real and artificial nests across studies and reviews. The negative perception of artificial nests providing an inconsistent assessment of survival has thus fostered the perception that artificial nests are a secondary option to be used to overcome logistical hurdles associated with achieving sufficient sample sizes in systems where study species are rare or elusive, or as merely a preliminary method to study predation across gradients. We argue that the greatest mistake ecologists have made …

Cumulative Adverse Effects Of Offshore Wind Energy Development On Wildlife, Morgan Goodale

Doctoral Dissertations

Offshore wind energy development is being pursued as a critical component in achieving a low-carbon energy economy. While the adverse effects of one wind farm on a particular wildlife population may be negligible, the aggregate effect of multiple wind farms through space and time could cause wildlife population declines. The risk of cumulative adverse effects (CAE) of offshore wind farms on wildlife is poorly researched and assessment processes are underdeveloped. Assessments of CAE must first calculate the cumulative exposure of a wildlife population to a hazard and then estimate how the exposure will affect the population. Our research responds to …

Impact Of Native Natural Enemies On Populations Of The Invasive Winter Moth (Operophtera Brumata L) In The Northeast United States, Hannah J. Broadley

Doctoral Dissertations

Invasive insects increasingly affect forested landscapes and have important ecological and economic impacts. My dissertation focuses on population dynamics of winter moth (Operophtera brumata L.), an invasive pest in the northeastern United States. Native to Europe, this is the species’ fourth accidental introduction to North America. The Elkinton lab established the biological control agent Cyzenis albicans across the range of winter moth in the northeastern U.S. Prior research indicates that C. albicans’ ability to control winter moth likely depends on additional mortality from native natural enemies. My dissertation research evaluates the identity and role of natural enemies already …

Contemporary Sunday Hunting Laws: Unnecessary Economic Roadblocks, Ripe For Repeal, Seamus Ovitt

William & Mary Environmental Law and Policy Review

In America, Sunday closing laws, laws restricting what activities individuals could engage in, date back to the early colonial period; those early laws, like much of North American jurisprudence, trace their roots to the laws that existed in England at the time. Historically, however, laws restricting the behavior of individuals, specifically on Sundays, date back thousands of years; initially, their language was tied directly to that of the Old Testament. As God declared:

[s]ix days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day [is] the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: [in it] thou shalt not …

Theory On Thermodynamic Constraints To Biogeochemical And Metabolic Diversity, Jordan Okie, Everett Shock

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.

Extreme Climate Events And The Ecological Dynamics Of Plant-Herbivore Interactions, David C. Elzinga, Christopher A. Klausmeier, William C. Wetzel

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.

Analysis Of An Agent-Based Model For Integrated Pest Management With Periodic Control Strategies, Timothy Comar, Elizabeth Rodriguez

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.

Stochastic Difference Model For Evolutional Dynamics Of Large Antigen Repertoires In African Trypanosomes, Fan Yu

Annual Symposium on Biomathematics and Ecology Education and Research

No abstract provided.

Justice Served Fresh: Associations Between Food Insecurity, Community Gardening, And Property Value, Micajah Daniels, Courtney Coughenour Ph.D

McNair Poster Presentations

Numerous stakeholders in Nevada have used a variety of efforts to combat the growth of food insecurity facing Nevadans. The purpose of this research project is to understand the association between food insecurity, community gardens, and property value. Following the wealth of scholarship on these topics and data collected from community garden agencies in Southern Nevada, the research questions for this project include: (1) Where are community gardens located in SNV? (2) What efforts community gardens agencies are doing to address food insecurity (most interested in their efforts using community gardens)? (3) What are the perceptions of supports and barriers …

Drivers Of Tree Growth And Mortality In An Uneven-Aged, Mixed-Species Conifer Forest Of Northeastern United States, Erin Fien

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Individual tree growth and mortality drive forest stand dynamics and are important, universal metrics of tree success. Studying the factors that affect growth and mortality is particularly challenging in mixed-species, uneven-aged systems due to their defining heterogeneity and strong temporal and spatial variability. However a better understanding of the factors driving growth and mortality in mixed-species, uneven-aged forest is crucial to managing and maintaining these valuable systems for the future.

The goal of this study was to determine the relative importance of individual tree attributes (e.g., species, size, neighborhood crowding, crown position) and environmental characteristics (e.g., soil moisture) in driving …

Breeding Bird Response To Post Oak Savanna Restoration Seven Years Post Management In Eastern Texas, Courtney Mcinnerney

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Oak savannas were once an abundant vegetation type in the Midwestern United States that have now declined to <1% of their original distribution. Historically, natural disturbances such as periodic fire and grazing maintained oak savannas, but these have been reduced or eliminated, resulting in woody encroachment and subsequent habitat loss and degradation. In 2009-10, a baseline, pre-restoration study was completed to determine vegetation characteristics, breeding bird abundances, nest success, and nest site selection at the Gus Engeling Wildlife Management Area (GEWMA) in eastern Texas. The results showed a lack of savanna vegetation structure on degraded sites and few savanna or grassland obligate bird species. The goal of this study was to determine how breeding birds of oak savanna vegetation types in eastern Texas respond to restoration effects 7 years after initial management. Post-restoration surveys completed in 2016-17 showed a change in avian assemblages from a more woodland dominated community to grassland/savanna community. The presence and breeding of savanna obligate species dickcissel (Spiza americana) and lark sparrow (Chondestes grammacus) indicates that the restoration was successful. The presence of savanna species can be linked to the herbaceous vegetation that was restored to more closely resemble historic oak savanna structure and can quantify the success of restoration efforts.

Differential Spring Migration In The White-Throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia Albicollis), Andrew T. Beauchamp

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Differential migration timing between distinct classes of individuals is commonly observed in songbirds, however, the underlying behavioural mechanisms of differential timing are still uncertain for most species. My research applied a suite of advanced techniques to examine differential migration timing (by sex and morph) and its underlying behavioural mechanisms (refuelling rate, stopover duration, and wintering latitude) in spring migrating White-throated Sparrows (Zonotrichia albicollis) at a key stopover site. Protandry was the only form of differential migration timing observed, with males arriving at stopover on average 11 days earlier than females. Males and females had similar refuelling rate, stopover …

The Potential For Indirect Negative Effects Of Exotic Insect Species On A Liverwort, Bazzania Trilobata (Lepidoziaceae), Mediated By The Decline Of A Foundation Tree Species, Tsuga Canadensis (Pinaceae), Michelle R. Jackson, Jesse Bellemare

Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

In many ecological communities, the effects of exotic species are likely to extend beyond their direct interactions with natives, due to indirect effects. This dynamic might be particularly consequential in cases where invasive insects or other exotic herbivores target foundation plant species in the communities they invade. In this study at a site in western Massachusetts, we used experimental transplants to gauge the potential effects of a decline in the evergreen conifer Tsuga canadensis due to ongoing spread of two exotic insect pests on a liverwort, Bazzania trilobata, whose distribution is closely linked to dense stands of this conifer in …