Digital Commons Network^™

Wpa News 119 (2022), World Pheasant Association

Galliformes Specialist Group and Affiliated Societies: Newsletters

WPA News (Winter 2022), number 119

Published by the World Pheasant Association

River Report. State Of The Lower St. Johns River Basin, Florida: Water Quality, Fisheries, Aquatic Life, Contaminants, 2022., Environmental Protection Board, City Of Jacksonville, University Of North Florida, Jacksonville University, Gerry Pinto, Gretchen Bielmyer-Fraser, John Burr, Dale Casamatta, Charles Closmann, Brian P. Zoellner, Ashley Johnson, An-Phong Le, William Penwell, Radha Pyati

State of the River Report

No abstract provided.

Plague Risk In The Western United States Over Seven Decades Of Environmental Change, Colin J. Carlson, Sarah N. Bevins, Boris V. Schmid

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

After several pandemics over the last two millennia, the wildlife reservoirs of plague (Yersinia pestis) now persist around the world, including in the western United States. Routine surveillance in this region has generated comprehensive records of human cases and animal seroprevalence, creating a unique opportunity to test how plague reservoirs are responding to environmental change. Here, we test whether animal and human data suggest that plague reservoirs and spillover risk have shifted since 1950. To do so, we develop a new method for detecting the impact of climate change on infectious disease distributions, capable of disentangling long-term trends (signal) and …

Analysis Of Hematocrit Levels In Walleye Sander Vitreus From Similar Waterbodies, Alyssa Hauser

Journal of Earth and Life Science

Walleye Sander vitreus are a popular fish among anglers and hold a prominent place in Minnesotan’s identity as their state fish. Because of this, multiple management practices are used to ensure the continued health of their populations within Minnesota waters. In this study, the process of analyzing hematocrit levels was used to determine if the analysis of hematological parameters could be a useful tool in detecting differences in population health. To evaluate this, blood samples were acquired from age-0 and age-1 fish from two similar lakes and run through a hematocrit centrifuge to separate platelets from plasma to read the …

The Effects Of Diet On Yellow Perch Morphology Throughout Lake Bemidji, Quiana L. Radaich

Journal of Earth and Life Science

Morphology is very important as it looks at the arrangement of an organism’s parts to determine their functionality, development, and how they could have changed through evolution. It is also important for the identification of species as it can show how closely species are related. This study examines if the morphology of yellow perch changes throughout Lake Bemidji. Along with examining a subset of five stomachs for each group (A-F) of yellow perch collected to determine if diet was a driving force behind morphological changes. The data collected in this study suggested that morphology does change throughout Lake Bemidji and …

Model Definition For Genetic Evaluation Of Purebred And Crossbred Lambs Including Heterosis, Napoleón Vargas Jurado, David R. Notter, Joshua B. Taylor, Daniel J. Brown, Michelle R. Mousel, Ronald M. Lewis

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

Crossbreeding is a common practice among commercial sheep producers to improve animal performance. However, genetic evaluation of U.S. sheep is performed within breed type (terminal sire, semi-prolific, and western range). While incorporating crossbred records may improve assessment of purebreds, it requires accounting for heterotic and breed effects in the evaluation. The objectives of this study were to: 1) describe the development of a paternal composite (PC) line, 2) determine the effect of direct and maternal heterosis on growth traits of crossbred lambs, 3) estimate (co)variance components for direct and maternal additive, and uncorrelated maternal environmental, effects, and 4) provide an …

Interaction Of Urea With Frequency And Amount Of Distillers Grains Supplementation For Growing Steers On A High Forage Diet, Haley F. Linder, Josh E. Sebade, Zac E. Carlson, Hannah C. Wilson, Tyler J. Spore, Mary E. Drewnoski, Jim C. Macdonald

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

Two studies were conducted to determine interactions of urea inclusion to a dried distillers grains plus solubles (DDGS; 29.4% crude protein, 5.48% ether extract) supplement fed at two amounts and two frequencies to steers on a high forage diet. In Exp. 1, 120 (247 kg; SD = 20) steers were fed individually for 84 d. Steers received ad libitum grass hay (6.8% crude protein) and one of eight treatments. Treatment design was a 2 × 2 × 2 factorial. Supplement was fed daily or three times per week, amount of supplement fed was 6.36 kg dry matter (DM)/week [0.37% body …

Production Cow-Calf Responses From Perennial Forage-Based And Integrated Beef-Cropping Systems, Zac E. Carlson, Levi Mcphillips, Galen E. Erickson, Mary E. Drewnoski, Jim C. Macdonald

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

An experiment was conducted to measure production responses of an alternative cow-calf production system integrated into a cropping system without access to perennial forage compared to a traditional cow-calf system utilizing perennial forage. Multiparous, cross-bred beef cows (n = 160; average age = 6.2 ± 2.8 yr) were utilized in a randomized complete block experimental design and unstructured treatment design. Upon initiation, cows were blocked by age and stratified by source, assigned randomly to one of two production systems, each with four replicates (n = 20 cows/replicate). Once allotted to their treatment groups, cows remained in their experimental units for …

Evaluation Of A Novel Computer Vision-Based Livestock Monitoring System To Identify And Track Specific Behaviors Of Individual Nursery Pigs Within A Group-Housed Environment, Ty B. Schmidt, Jessica M. Lancaster, Eric T. Psota, Benny E. Mote, Lindsey E. Hulbert, Aaron Holliday, Ruth Woiwode, Lance Perez

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

Animal behavior is indicative of health status and changes in behavior can indicate health issues (i.e., illness, stress, or injury). Currently, human observation (HO) is the only method for detecting behavior changes that may indicate problems in group-housed pigs. While HO is effective, limitations exist. Limitations include HO being time consuming, HO obfuscates natural behaviors, and it is not possible to maintain continuous HO. To address these limitations, a computer vision platform (NUtrack) was developed to identify (ID) and continuously monitor specific behaviors of group-housed pigs on an individual basis. The objectives of this study were to evaluate the capabilities …

Assessing Population Structure And Genetic Diversity In Us Suffolk Sheep To Define A Framework For Genomic Selection, Carrie S. Wilson, Jessica L. Petersen, Harvey D. Blackburn, Ronald M. Lewis

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

Long-term sustainability of breeds depends on having sufficient genetic diversity for adaptability to change, whether driven by climatic conditions or by priorities in breeding programs. Genetic diversity in Suffolk sheep in the United States was evaluated in four ways: 1) using genetic relationships from pedigree data [(n = 64 310 animals recorded in the US National Sheep Improvement Program (NSIP)]; 2) using molecular data (n = 304 Suffolk genotyped with the OvineHD BeadChip); 3) comparing Australian (n = 109) and Irish (n = 55) Suffolk sheep to those in the United States using molecular data; and 4) assessing genetic relationships …

Site Of Infusion Of A Commercially Available Direct-Fed Microbial On Performance And Digestibility In Lactating Holstein Cows, K. S. Thompson, A. G. Mckeith, C. R. Krehbiel

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

Objective: The objective of this research was to evaluate site of infusion of a commercially available direct-fed microbial (DFM) containing 10⁹ cfu/g of Lactobacillus acidophilus and 10⁹ cfu/g Propionibacterium freudenreichii on DMI, rumen kinetics, ruminal VFA, digestibility, milk production, milk components, and blood metabolites in lactating dairy cows.

Materials and Methods: Four Holstein cows equipped with ruminal cannulas were used in a Latin square design experiment with 4 periods. Each 37-d period consisted of 14 d of no treatment to prevent crossover contamination, 14 d of adaptation to treatments, 8 d of sampling, and 1 d for …

Optimising The Carcass Merit Of Irish Beef Cattle Using Genetic And Non-Genetic Information At The Animal And Herd Level, David Kenny

Theses

Failure of beef carcasses to achieve desirable carcass specifications represent inefficiencies within the supply chain, namely greater carcass processing costs and the inability of the resulting primal cuts to conform to high-value market specifications. Analysis of a representative sample of prime Irish beef cattle conducted in this thesis determined that 59% of cattle fail to achieve the desired carcass specifications of the supply chain at slaughter. The objective of this thesis was to use readily available information to define strategies that could help to reduce this statistic. Firstly, the likelihood of Irish beef carcasses achieving the desired carcass specifications was …

Contents, Discovery Editors

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Letter From The Faculty Editor, Beth Kegley

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Instructions For Authors, Discovery Editors

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Final Report Floating Upwelling System Harvest Road Oceans, Robert Michael, Scott Bennett

Fisheries Occasional Publications

A Floating Upwelling System or FLUPSY is a mechanical system for the culture of seed stock during the nursery stage of commercial bivalve production.

Comparison Of Bigheaded Carp Reproduction In Tributaries Of The Illinois And Wabash Rivers, David J. Yff

Masters Theses

Understanding environmental conditions that support bigheaded carp (Hypophthalmichthys sp.) reproduction in tributary rivers provides key predictions of their invasion throughout the United States. Past research, primarily in larger order rivers, identified factors such as discharge, temperature, and turbidity as main environmental drivers of bigheaded carp reproduction. I used the variable hydrologic conditions between the Illinois and Wabash Rivers to compare environmental conditions between tributaries of each basin, determine which conditions influence bigheaded carp reproduction in tributaries, and predict tributaries likely to support bigheaded carp reproduction. Three tributaries of the Illinois and Wabash Rivers were sampled for ichthyoplankton from …

Differences In The Growth And Bioenergetics Between Centrarchids In A Midwestern Power Plant Lake, Kyle Joseph Rempe

Masters Theses

Black Crappie Pomoxis nigromaculatus and Bluegill Lepomis macrochirus are popular sportfishes that co-occur in similar bodies of water throughout most of the Central and Eastern United States but have distinct thermal physiologies. L. macrochirus is often found in warmer regions of freshwater reservoirs, where P. nigromaculatus tends to exploit cooler regions, especially in power plant cooling reservoirs. The coal-fired Coffeen Power Station ceased energy production in October 2019, providing an ideal scenario to study the organismal effects of the sudden shift in thermal regime. Previous studies showed that P. nigromaculatus inhabited the less thermally-impacted areas of Coffeen Lake, whereas L. …

Oregon State Rank Assessment For Larch Mountain Salamander (Plethodon Larselli), Eleanor P. Gaines

Institute for Natural Resources Publications

Oregon state conservation status assessment for Larch Mountain salamander (Plethodon larselli) using NatureServe methodology, 2022.

Evaluating Population Genetic Structure And Potential Genomic Signals Of Natural Selection In A Migratory Songbird (Protonotaria Citrea), Tyler A. Hohenstein

Theses and Dissertations

In this study I attempted to further resolve the population genetic structure in the Prothonotary Warbler (Protonotaria citrea), and conducted an outlier SNP analysis and exploratory gene ontology analysis to investigate potential ongoing natural selection in the species. This analysis of population structure confirms previous work by DeSaix et al. (2019), where weak population structure was observed between eastern sites along the Atlantic Coastal Plain, and western sites in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley, possibly due to a genetic discontinuity across the Appalachian Mountains. I conducted two forms of outlier SNP analyses, a principal component analysis (PCA)-based approach to identify SNPs …

Avian Eggshell Coloration Predicts Shell-Matrix Protoporphyrin Content, Charles F. Thompson, Kara E. Hodges, Nathan T. Mortimer, Alysia D. Vrailas-Mortimer, Scott K. Sakaluk, Mark E. Hauber

Faculty Publications – Biological Sciences

Avian eggshell pigmentation may provide information about a female’s physiological condition, in particular her state of oxidative balance. Previously we found that female House Wrens (Troglodytes aedon Vieillot, 1809) with lighter, less-maculated, and redder ground-colored shells were older and produced heavier offspring than females laying more-maculated and browner eggs. The strong pro-oxidant protoporphyrin is responsible for this species’ eggshell pigmentation, so differences in pigmentary coloration may be related to eggshell protoporphyrin content and reflect female oxidative balance and condition during egg formation. Therefore, we tested the assumption that egg-surface coloration is related to the amount of protoporphyrin in the …

Effect Of Finishing System And Animal Age On Carcass Traits And Nutritional Profile Of Bison Bulls, Clay Newton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The objectives of this thesis project were to 1) evaluate the influence of grain- and grass-finishing systems on carcass characteristics, proximate composition, nutritional profile, and fatty acid composition of bison bull meat, and 2) evaluate the influence of animal age on carcass characteristics of bison bulls. For objective 1, bison bulls were allowed to graze native range in north-central Nebraska until approximately 26 mo of age, when they were randomly assigned to either grain-finishing (n = 98; in an open lot with ad libitum access to prairie hay, alfalfa hay and corn for 95 d prior to slaughter) or grass-finishing …

Living In A Gradient: The Influence Of Water Temperature Variation On Development, Settling Time And Survival Of Pallid Sturgeon Larvae In The Missouri River, Maria Elizabeth Erceg

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Pallid Sturgeon (Scaphirhynchus albus) are a federally endangered species experiencing widespread reproduction and recruitment failures. Recruitment failure is hypothesized to be caused by habitat modifications made to the Missouri River that disrupt connectivity and alter temperature profiles downstream of constructed dams. Hypolimnetic releases from Missouri River dams affect the temperature downstream, creating colder conditions during the downstream drifting phase for dispersing larvae. Understanding the influence of water temperature changes on larval development is crucial for recovery efforts. In this study, we evaluated the effects of water temperature daily heating rate on energy use, settling behavior, and growth rate of endogenously …

New Baraminological Methods Confirm Monobaraminic Status Of The Horses (Perissodactyla: Equidae) And Preliminary Analyses Of New Datasets Suggest The Possibility Of Discontinuity Between Horses And Various Outgroup Taxa, Timothy R. Brophy, Jack Gregory, Mary-Elizabeth Tallman, Kara Ray

Faculty Publications and Presentations

No abstract provided.

Modeling The Flow And Creep Compliance Properties Of Ice-Cream Mixes, Hiran Ranaweera

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This work documented the influence of the protein source (MPC80 and WPC80), protein content (4-12%), and temperature (5-35ºC) on the rheological behavior (flow curve, frequency sweep, and creep-recovery) of ice-cream mixes (ICM). For each protein source, the viscosity of the ICM was satisfactorily modeled (𝑅2>0.98, 𝑅2 𝑎𝑑𝑗>0.98, and E0.99), while the recovery phase was represented by an empirical model. The percentage of recovery (%R) of the ICM significantly decreased with the protein content.

Spatio-Temporal Movement Patterns Of Sub-Adult Adfluvial Bull Trout, Aimee Taylor

All Master's Theses

Bull Trout in the Yakima River basin of Washington are primarily adfluvial, often using managed lakes as habitat. Kachess Lake, composed of Big and Little Kachess Lakes, is managed by the Bureau of Reclamation (BOR) for water storage. BOR plans to build a structure that can withdraw an additional 200,000 acre-feet of water in drought years, which would disconnect the two basins for multiple years. This study examined the spatio-temporal movement of sub-adult Bull Trout in Kachess Lake to understand distribution patterns and the effects of environmental variables. We sought to answer 1) does time (week of the year), diel …

Evaluating The Effects Of Medium Chain Fatty Acids On Sow Reproductive Characteristics, Offspring Biological Health Markers, And Growth Performance, Analicia J. Swanson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

A sow’s diet can influence and her offspring not only in the suckling period, but well after weaning. The objective of this study was to determine how supplementing medium chain fatty acids (MCFA) in gestation and lactation impacted offspring growth performance as well as the biological markers of pig quality from the suckling period until week 6 of the nursery period. A total of 77 primparious and multiparious females and their 438 offspring were utilized in this study. Sows and gilts (218.15 kg ± 32.15 kg BW at d28 of gestation) were assigned to one of 2 dietary treatments: Control …

Mechanisms Of Programmed Nutrition In Finishing Cattle In Vivo And Ruminal Parameters Of Amaize Supplementation In Vitro, Amanda Pesqueira Schiff

Theses and Dissertations--Animal and Food Sciences

Programmed Nutrition Beef Program (Alltech Inc.) is a dietary supplement that contains Aspergillus oryzae fermentation extract with α-amylase activity that could reduce the use of feed additives such as monensin and tylosin in conventional feedlot diets. This study examines the changes in rumen fermentation resulting from feeding monensin/tylosin and Programmed Nutrition Beef Finisher. The goal was to determine if these shifts in rumen fermentation contribute to the Programmed Nutrition response observed in vivo. This study also analyzes how different levels of α-amylase (Amaize)supplementation impacts feedstuff degradation and utilization in vitro. In vivo experiment used eight steers in a replicated …

Understanding Caribou Population Cycles, Jack R. St. John

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

The complex population dynamics of caribou (Rangifer tarandus) were studied to determine the patterns of their population cycles and the processes driving them. It is well established, via previous archaeological research and Indigenous knowledge, that large migrating caribou herds found in and around the tundra at northern latitudes experience population boom and busts roughly every several decades. However, the processes driving the dynamics of these cycles are relatively unknown, which makes managing caribou herds for recreational and subsistence harvests difficult. It has been hypothesized that a combination of intrinsic and extrinsic factors shape these cycles, with density-dependence, predation, …

Relating Habitat Use To Survival Of Oncorhynchus In Rock Creek And The Clark Fork River, Brett D. Traxler

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

Westslope Cutthroat Trout Oncorhynchus clarkii lewisi (WCT) is a native trout species of conservation concern in Montana. Both migratory and resident life histories can be found in cutthroat from the same natal stream. Habitat degradation and hybridization with rainbow trout O. mykiss (RBT) have resulted in few genetically pure, migratory WCT populations persisting in large river systems. These WCT conservation populations are occurring more and more as isolated, resident populations in headwater streams. Rock Creek in Western MT has retained a unique population of migratory, non-hybridized WCT, and is of special conservation and ecological interest. As we work to protect …