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Migration Patterns And Movements Of Sandhill Cranes Wintering In Central And Southwestern Louisiana, Sammy L. King, Aaron R. Pierce, Kent R. Hersey, Nicholas Winstead Jan 2010

Migration Patterns And Movements Of Sandhill Cranes Wintering In Central And Southwestern Louisiana, Sammy L. King, Aaron R. Pierce, Kent R. Hersey, Nicholas Winstead

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

In this study we trapped wintering sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis) in Louisiana and fitted them with satellite transmitters to determine their migration routes. Four of the 6 sandhill cranes with validated locations and a terminus point used the Central Flyway for spring migration; 2 of these 4 (the only 2 for which we have data) also used the Central Flyway for fall migration. Two of the 6 birds used the Mississippi Flyway for spring migration. The results of this study suggest that reintroduced whooping cranes (G. americana) that intermix and migrate with sandhill cranes that winter …

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Countability Of Sandhill Cranes In Aerial Surveys, Douglas H. Johnson, John W. Solberg, Courtney L. Amundson Jan 2010

Countability Of Sandhill Cranes In Aerial Surveys, Douglas H. Johnson, John W. Solberg, Courtney L. Amundson

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Aerial surveys are used to monitor populations of many wildlife species, including sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis). In addition to the usual problems of detectability (involving both availability and perceptibility), aerial surveys of concentrated animals are subject to countability issues; from a rapidly moving aircraft, observers cannot count or accurately estimate the number of animals in a large group. Calibration is sometimes performed in an effort to adjust aerial counts for incomplete detectability and countability by calculating the ratio of animals actually in a group to the number in the group estimated from the aircraft. Here we explore alternative, …

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Aerial Survey Techniques For Breeding Whooping Cranes, Brian W. Johns Jan 2010

Aerial Survey Techniques For Breeding Whooping Cranes, Brian W. Johns

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

Since the discovery of nesting whooping cranes in Wood Buffalo National Park, the Canadian Wildlife Service has conducted aerial surveys to monitor the population. Aerial survey techniques have varied over the years; however, they have generally followed the techniques used by the author since 1991. The technique involves flying a combination of circular flights and transects over known nesting territories and similar looking marshes likely to contain breeding whooping cranes. These aerial surveys account for nearly 100% of the breeding whooping cranes each year.

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Whooping Crane Migrational Habitat Use Of The Platte River, Nebraska, 2001–2006, Shay Howlin, Clayton Derby, Dale Strickland Jan 2010

Whooping Crane Migrational Habitat Use Of The Platte River, Nebraska, 2001–2006, Shay Howlin, Clayton Derby, Dale Strickland

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

The Platte River Endangered Species Partnership monitored whooping crane (Grus americana) habitat use along the Platte River between Chapman and Lexington, Nebraska during 11 migration seasons from 2001 to 2006. Daily aerial surveys took place in the morning from 21 March to 29 April in the spring and from 9 October to 10 November in the fall. Decoy detection trials were conducted during each of the 11 survey seasons to calculate actual sample inclusion probabilities for crane groups detected during monitoring flights. The detectability model found significant differences in detectability among strata (upland or channel), contractor, and altitude …

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Mississippi Sandhill Crane Conservation Update 2006–2008, Scott G. Hereford, Lauren E. Billodeaux Jan 2010

Mississippi Sandhill Crane Conservation Update 2006–2008, Scott G. Hereford, Lauren E. Billodeaux

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

The Mississippi sandhill crane (MSC, Grus canadensis pulla) is an endangered non-migratory subspecies found in the wild only on and near the Mississippi Sandhill Crane National Wildlife Refuge (MSCNWR) in Jackson County in southeastern Mississippi (Gee and Hereford 1995). The MSC is adapted to the wet pine savannas and open pinelands of the Southeastern Outer Gulf Coastal Plain. By the 1970s, their numbers had decreased to 30-40 individuals including only 5-6 nesting pairs. The firemaintained savannas, once a dominant feature of the landscape, were converted to pine plantations and human development or had degraded to overgrown pine scrub. The …

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Development Of The Whooping Crane Tracking Project Geographic Information System, Martha Tacha, Andy Bishop, Justin Brei Jan 2010

Development Of The Whooping Crane Tracking Project Geographic Information System, Martha Tacha, Andy Bishop, Justin Brei

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

The highest losses in the Aransas-Wood Buffalo whooping crane population occur during migration. Conservation and recovery of the endangered whooping crane requires understanding of migration patterns to identify important stopover areas and potential sources of mortality or disturbance. We converted the Cooperative Whooping Crane Tracking Project database, containing more than 3 decades of data on whooping crane sightings, to a geographic information system (GIS) to allow coarse scale spatial analyses of whooping crane migration patterns in the United States portion of the Central Flyway. At this writing, the geodatabase contains point data for 1,981 confirmed whooping crane sightings through the …

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A Retrospective Serological Survey For Infectious Bursal Disease Virus In Free-Ranging Sandhill Cranes In South-Central Wisconsin, Richard R. Sim, Barry K. Hartup Jan 2010

A Retrospective Serological Survey For Infectious Bursal Disease Virus In Free-Ranging Sandhill Cranes In South-Central Wisconsin, Richard R. Sim, Barry K. Hartup

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

A retrospective serosurvey of resident sandhill cranes (Grus candensis pratensis) in Florida suggested Infectious Bursal Disease Virus (IBDV, family Birnaviridae) may have been enzootic there as early as 1992, with 13-63% seroprevalence among age classes and wide geographic distribution of seropositive cranes. The purpose of our study was to describe the prevalence of antibodies to IBDV serotype 2 in a local population of greater sandhill cranes (G. c. tabida) near Briggsville, Wisconsin, that overlapped with resident Florida birds in winter during the same time period. Blood samples were collected June through October between 1996 and 1999 …

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Summary Of Sandhill Crane Hunting Seasons In Kansas 1993–2007, David E. Sharp, Helen M. Hands, James A. Dubovsky, John E. Cornely Jan 2010

Summary Of Sandhill Crane Hunting Seasons In Kansas 1993–2007, David E. Sharp, Helen M. Hands, James A. Dubovsky, John E. Cornely

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

The mid-continent population of sandhill cranes (Grus canadensis) is the largest population of cranes in North America. Hunting seasons for sandhill cranes were closed in 1916 and gradually resumed in Mexico (1940), the United States (1961), and Canada (1964). As knowledge of the biology of cranes and experience with hunting seasons increased, areas in which hunting was permitted expanded, and by 1992 all but 2 states (Nebraska and Kansas) in the U.S. portion of the Central Flyway conducted sport hunting seasons for this population. In 1993 Kansas resumed hunting and initial seasons were limited to specified geographic areas of …

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Proceedings Of The Eleventh North American Crane Workshop: Preface And Contents Jan 2010

Proceedings Of The Eleventh North American Crane Workshop: Preface And Contents

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

The North American Crane Working Group (NACWG) is an organization of professional biologists, aviculturists, land managers, and other interested individuals dedicated to the conservation of cranes and their habitats in North America. Our group meets approximately every 3 years to exchange new information on research and conservation of sandhill and whooping cranes and occasionally reports from abroad. Our meeting in Wisconsin Dells, Wisconsin, 23-27 September 2008, was no exception. The workshop was ably organized by Tom Hoffman, the scientific program was well-constructed by Jane Austin, and George Archibald and Richard Urbanek helped to bring together a memorable field day in …

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Wintering Sandhill Crane Distribution And Habitat Use Patterns At Bosque Del Apache National Wildlife Refuge, New Mexico, Tandi L. Perkins, Leigh H. Fredrickson Jan 2010

Wintering Sandhill Crane Distribution And Habitat Use Patterns At Bosque Del Apache National Wildlife Refuge, New Mexico, Tandi L. Perkins, Leigh H. Fredrickson

Proceedings of the North American Crane Workshop

The single most important factor regulating sandhill crane (Grus canadensis) populations is their ability to carry out annual life cycle events while responding to changing habitat availability and distribution across local, regional, and continental landscapes. Wetland and cropland resource availability and distribution across the landscape have become increasingly unpredictable. Recent changes in farming practices, urbanization, and prevailing drought conditions in New Mexico have transformed and reduced dynamic, heterogeneous landscapes into scattered fragments of the original setting. Concerns are increasing for the cumulative influence of these often irreversible actions in providing the type of resources needed by cranes at …

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Prolonged Intensive Dominance Behavior Between Gray Wolves, Canis Lupus, L. David Mech, H. Dean Cluff Jan 2010

Prolonged Intensive Dominance Behavior Between Gray Wolves, Canis Lupus, L. David Mech, H. Dean Cluff

United States Geological Survey, Northern Prairie Wildlife Research Center: Publications

Dominance is one of the most pervasive and important behaviors among wolves in a pack, yet its significance in free-ranging packs has been little studied. Insights into a behavior can often be gained by examining unusual examples of it. In the High Arctic near Eureka, Nunavut, Canada, we videotaped and described an unusually prolonged and intensive behavioral bout between an adult male Gray Wolf (Canis lupus) and a male member of his pack, thought to be a maturing son.With tail raised, the adult approached a male pack mate about 50 m from us and pinned and straddled this …

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Morphological Differences Among Eyeless Amphipods In The Genus Stygobromus Dwelling In Different Subterranean Habitats, David C. Culver, John R. Holsinger, Mary C. Christman, Tanja Pipan Jan 2010

Morphological Differences Among Eyeless Amphipods In The Genus Stygobromus Dwelling In Different Subterranean Habitats, David C. Culver, John R. Holsinger, Mary C. Christman, Tanja Pipan

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

The amphipod genus Stygobromus occurs in a variety of subterranean habitats in North America, including caves, phreatic (groundwater) lakes, and superficial subterranean habitats (seeps and epikarst). The habitats share the absence of light but differ in other features, such as pore size of the habitat, available food, and degree of seasonality. Measurements of body size, antennal size, and antennal segment number of type specimens were compared for 56 species occurring in the eastern United States. Except for differences in body size, differences among species in the four different habitats were not significant. Body size was related to relative pore size …

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The Impact Of Conservation On The Status Of The World's Vertebrates, Michael Hoffmann, Craig Hilton-Taylor, Ariadne Angulo, Monika Böhm, Thomas M. Brooks, Stuart H. M. Butchart, Kent E. Carpenter, Janice Chanson, Beth A. Polidoro, Jonnell C. Sanciangco Jan 2010

The Impact Of Conservation On The Status Of The World's Vertebrates, Michael Hoffmann, Craig Hilton-Taylor, Ariadne Angulo, Monika Böhm, Thomas M. Brooks, Stuart H. M. Butchart, Kent E. Carpenter, Janice Chanson, Beth A. Polidoro, Jonnell C. Sanciangco

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Using data for 25,780 species categorized on the International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List, we present an assessment of the status of the world's vertebrates. One-fifth of species are classified as Threatened, and we show that this figure is increasing: On average, 52 species of mammals, birds, and amphibians move one category closer to extinction each year. However, this overall pattern conceals the impact of conservation successes, and we show that the rate of deterioration would have been at least one-fifth again as much in the absence of these. Nonetheless, current conservation efforts remain insufficient to offset the …

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Micro-Environment And Plant Assemblage Structure On Virginia's Barrier Island "Pimple" Dunes, Brett A. Mcmillan, Frank P. Day Jan 2010

Micro-Environment And Plant Assemblage Structure On Virginia's Barrier Island "Pimple" Dunes, Brett A. Mcmillan, Frank P. Day

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

“Pimple” dunes are small, rounded coastal dunes that form along major dune ridges of the barrier islands along the Eastern Shore of Virginia. Although most pimple dunes are small structures ranging between 10 and 20 m in diameter, they have distinct plant assemblages that replicate the upland ecotones of their barrier islands. We examined the relationship between microenvironment, edaphic factors, and plant assemblage structure on pimple dunes. Water availability was an obvious major ecological driver, but we also tested other environmental factors that may correlate with plant assemblage structure. We found distinct assemblage types that segregated themselves by habitat type: …

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Diel Fish Habitat Selection In A Tributary Stream, Andria K. Salas, Eric B. Snyder Jan 2010

Diel Fish Habitat Selection In A Tributary Stream, Andria K. Salas, Eric B. Snyder

Peer Reviewed Publications

This study investigated the location and diel habitat preferences (at 100 m reach scale) of fish in a small tributary stream in late spring, early summer. During the day, coho (Oncorhynchus kisutch) preferred areas with more cover (deeper, greater extent of undercut banks) vs. night when LWD was preferred (Pearson correlation and step-wise MLR). Chinook (O. tshawytscha) exhibited an opposite pattern, preferring LWD during the day vs. higher velocity at night. This suggests these two potadromous species may be partitioning resources. Pooling coho, chinook and rainbow trout (O. mykiss) indicated reaches with more LWD …

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Experimental Drought In A Tropical Rain Forest Increases Soil Carbon Dioxide Losses To The Atmosphere, Cory C. Cleveland, William R. Wieder, Sasha C. Reed, Alan R. Townsend Jan 2010

Experimental Drought In A Tropical Rain Forest Increases Soil Carbon Dioxide Losses To The Atmosphere, Cory C. Cleveland, William R. Wieder, Sasha C. Reed, Alan R. Townsend

Ecosystem and Conservation Sciences Faculty Publications

Climate models predict precipitation changes for much of the humid tropics, yet few studies have investigated the potential consequences of drought on soil carbon (C) cycling in this important biome. In wet tropical forests, drought could stimulate soil respiration via overall reductions in soil anoxia, but previous research suggests that litter decomposition is positively correlated with high rainfall fluxes that move large quantities of dissolved organic matter (DOM) from the litter layer to the soil surface. Thus, reduced rainfall could also limit C delivery to the soil surface, reducing respiration rates. We conducted a throughfall manipulation experiment to investigate how …

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Biodiversity Assessment Of The Fishes Of Saba Bank Atoll, Netherlands Antilles, Jeffrey T. Williams, Kent E. Carpenter, James L. Van Tassell, Paul Hoetjes, Wes Toller, Peter Etnoyer, Michael Smith Jan 2010

Biodiversity Assessment Of The Fishes Of Saba Bank Atoll, Netherlands Antilles, Jeffrey T. Williams, Kent E. Carpenter, James L. Van Tassell, Paul Hoetjes, Wes Toller, Peter Etnoyer, Michael Smith

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Biodiversity surveys were conducted on Saba Bank, Netherlands Antilles, to assess ichthyofaunal richness and to compare with published surveys of other Caribbean localities. The primary objective was to estimate the total species richness of the Saba Bank ichthyofauna. A variety of sampling techniques was utilized to survey the fish species of both the visually accessible megafauna and the camouflaged and small-sized species comprising the cryptic ichthyofauna. Based on results presented herein, the number of species known on Saba Bank is increased from 42 previously known species to 270 species. Expected species-accumulation curves demonstrate that the current estimate of species richness …

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Niche Specialization And Conservation Biology Of Cicindela Nevadica Lincolniana, Tierney R. Brosius Jan 2010

Niche Specialization And Conservation Biology Of Cicindela Nevadica Lincolniana, Tierney R. Brosius

Department of Entomology: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

As with many organisms across the globe, Cicindela nevadica lincolniana is threatened with extinction. Understanding ecological factors that contribute to extinction vulnerability and what methods aid in the recovery of those species is essential in developing successful conservation programs. Here we examine behavioral mechanisms for niche partitioning along with improving techniques for captive rearing protocol and increasing public awareness about the conservation of this local insect. Ovipositional selectivity was examined for Cicindela nevadica lincolniana, Cicindela circumpicta, Cicindela togata, Cicindela punctulata, and Cicindela fulgida. Models reflect that these species of co-occurring tiger beetles select different ranges of salinity in which to …

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Carbon Dynamics In A Phragmites Australis Invaded Riparian Wetland, Steven Walters Jan 2010

Carbon Dynamics In A Phragmites Australis Invaded Riparian Wetland, Steven Walters

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

Invasive plant species are widely recognized as a major threat to biodiversity and ecosystem stability. Wetland ecosystems tend to be much more susceptible to invasions because of their location on the landscape where water, nutrients, and the impacts of disturbances accumulate. Invasive plants have the ability to alter ecosystem processes and community/population dynamics. The ability of invasive plants to alter these processes can have profound economic consequences. In the United States, control of invasive wetland species alone costs approximately 155 million dollars annually. The state of Nebraska spends 2 million dollars annually controlling invasive plant species in the Platte River …

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Retention, Movement, And The Biotic Response To Large Woody Debris In The Channelized Missouri River, Michael W. Archer Jan 2010

Retention, Movement, And The Biotic Response To Large Woody Debris In The Channelized Missouri River, Michael W. Archer

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

Large woody debris (LWD) is an important component of a healthy aquatic ecosystem. However, little is known about the dynamics of LWD in a large, channelized river such as the Missouri River. My objectives were to first, assess the abundance of LWD found along the channelized portion of the Missouri River. Second, I documented movement of LWD that entered the river. Lastly, using PRIMER software I analyzed what effect, if any, river segments, bend types, and LWD had on the community composition of the macroinvertebrate and fish that inhabit the river. Abundance of LWD was greater along bends that have …

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Unbalanced Nature, Unbounded Bodies, And Unlimited Technology: Ecocriticism And Karen Traviss’S Wess’Har Series, Heather I. Sullivan Jan 2010

Unbalanced Nature, Unbounded Bodies, And Unlimited Technology: Ecocriticism And Karen Traviss’S Wess’Har Series, Heather I. Sullivan

Modern Languages and Literatures Faculty Research

While nature is often claimed to be a space of harmonized balance or an antidote to the chaos of the modern world, we need a more grounded assessment of nature as endlessly changing and much less predictable than we like to assume. In this essay, I explore Karen Traviss’ provocative exploration of unbalanced nature and unbounded bodies in her wess’har series with the guidance of two ecocritics who reject the concept of balanced nature, Dana Phillips and Ursula Heise. Additionally, I turn to the environmental philosopher Val Plumwood for insights regarding Traviss’ spurious yet rather standard vision of an unlimited …

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Canopy Demographics At The Firestone Reserve, Costa Rica, Gizelle M. Pera Jan 2010

Canopy Demographics At The Firestone Reserve, Costa Rica, Gizelle M. Pera

CMC Senior Theses

Though Costa Rica has suffered numerous bouts of deforestation to its valuable tropical rainforest area, especially in the 1970s, it has become a leader in its efforts to regenerate and restore its rainforest. However, studies and protocols for the assessment of forest regeneration are urgently required. Research has shown that the percentage of light penetrating the canopy floor, or light fraction, is a good indicator of rainforest maturity. In this study, digital rectilinear photography and a global positioning system receiver were used to survey the Firestone Reserve inCosta Rica in order to measure the light fraction differences between primary/riparian …

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The Capacity Of Diatom Species To Survive Ingestion By The Algivorous Minnow, Pimephales Notatus, Paul Gregory Grubach Jan 2010

The Capacity Of Diatom Species To Survive Ingestion By The Algivorous Minnow, Pimephales Notatus, Paul Gregory Grubach

Masters Theses

The capacity of diatom species to survive gastrointestinal passage through the algivorous minnows Pimephales notatusand Campostoma anomalum was studied. From a site on the Grand River in northeastern Ohio, 27 minnows and 7 epilithic diatom samples were taken. In order to determine whether diatom taxa varied in digestibility, live/dead ratios of diatom cells taken from the minnows’ feces were compared with live/dead ratios of cells taken from immersed rocks. Diatoms that were live/undigested at the time of collection were differentiated from dead/digested cells under light microscopy by noting the presence of chloroplasts and/or lipid droplets. Seventy-seven percent of the …

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Ecology Of Mayfly (Insecta : Ephemeroptera) Nymphs In Three Streams Of Ulu Gombak Forest Reserve, Peninsular Malaysia., Sree Gayathree Selvantharan Jan 2010

Ecology Of Mayfly (Insecta : Ephemeroptera) Nymphs In Three Streams Of Ulu Gombak Forest Reserve, Peninsular Malaysia., Sree Gayathree Selvantharan

Student Works (2010-2019)

Three sampling stations with various environmental quality gradients in Ulu Gombak Forest Reserve, Selangor, Peninsular Malaysia were selected in this study: Sungai Gombak, Anak Sungai Gombak and Sungai Batu 19. A total of six genera of ephemeropteran nymphs were found from the mentioned streams: Baetis sp. (Baetidae) (232), Thalerosphyrus sp. (Heptageniidae) (925), Campsoneuria sp. (Heptageniidae) (1432), Neurocaenis sp. (Tricorythidae) (471), Platybaetis sp. (Baetidae) (12) and Prosopistoma sp. (Prosopistomatidae) (1). The most dominant family of ephemeropteran nymphs is Heptageniidae while Neurocaenis sp. (Tricorythidae) were the only nymphs that showed significant difference in abundance between all three streams (p=0.05) using student t-test. …

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Water Quality Study Of Paya Indah Wetlands., Ridzuan Ahmad Jan 2010

Water Quality Study Of Paya Indah Wetlands., Ridzuan Ahmad

Student Works (2010-2019)

A study had been carried out on Paya Indah Wetlands’ water quality from December 2006 to February 2007. This was to determine the status of water quality. From the analysis on Water Quality Index (WQI) at 15 sampling stations, it was observed that WQI of Paya Indah at most stations were within polluted range. From the comparative study made on WQI at major lakes and canals between year 1996 and 2006/2007, it was observed that Canal C2 and Canal C4 show slight improvement (48.7 – 50.0 and 41.5 – 59.2 respectively). However, major lakes of Paya Indah shows decrease of …

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Phylogeographical Patterns Of Neobalanocarpus Heimii (Dipterocarpaceae) For The Evolutionary History And Chain Of Custody Certification., Tnah Lee Hong Jan 2010

Phylogeographical Patterns Of Neobalanocarpus Heimii (Dipterocarpaceae) For The Evolutionary History And Chain Of Custody Certification., Tnah Lee Hong

Student Works (2010-2019)

Tectonic movement and climatic oscillations during the Cenozoic have had dramatic effect on the biota of the tropical rain forest. This study aims to reveal the phylogeography and evolutionary history of a Peninsular Malaysian endemic tropical timber, Neobalanocarpus heimii (Dipterocarpaceae), based on chloroplast DNA (cpDNA) variation. Fifteen haplotypes were identified from 10 intraspecific variable sites of five non-coding cpDNA regions: trnL intron, trnS-trnG spacer, trnG intron, trnK intron and psbK-trnS spacer. Two major genealogical cpDNA lineages of N. heimii were elucidated: a widespread southern and a northern region. The species is predicted to survive in multiple refugia during climatic oscillation: …

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Biofouling And Short-Term Dynamics On Fish Cage Netting In Relation To Fish Rearing And Environmental Factors., John Madin Jan 2010

Biofouling And Short-Term Dynamics On Fish Cage Netting In Relation To Fish Rearing And Environmental Factors., John Madin

Student Works (2010-2019)

Four studies were conducted in a floating net-cages farm at Matang Mangrove Forest Reserve (MMFR), Perak, Malaysia, to elucidate the biofouling assemblages on cage nettings and factors that influence their development. In the first study (Chapter 3),biofouling on 1.6 cm mesh net panels (size 0.2 m x 2 m) suspended inside (homemade pellet ‘P’, trash fish ‘T’) and outside (O) experimental net-cages in a fish farm were monitored every week until net openings were completely occluded by macrofouling organisms. Eight species (7 phyla) of sessile organisms and 27 species (3 phyla) of nonsessile associates were recorded.Colonization by macrofouling organisms usually …

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Trophic Implications Of Light Reductions For Amphibolis Griffithii Seagrass Fauna, Adam Gartner Jan 2010

Trophic Implications Of Light Reductions For Amphibolis Griffithii Seagrass Fauna, Adam Gartner

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

The ongoing threat of seagrass loss from reduced light availability, coupled with our lack of knowledge of associated trophic responses has motivated this characterization of the flow-on effects of light reductions to Amphibolis griffithii seagrass fauna. Recently, field manipulations of varying light reductions, induced disturbances in a A. griffithii seagrass meadow that have been shown to effect potential food resources and the structural complexity of seagrass habitats for macroinvertebrates. This offered the opportunity to assess the flow-on effects to seagrass for fauna, a topic that has seldom been examined. This study investigated the effects of different light reduction intensity (high: …

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Lobster Attack Induces Sensitization In The Sea Hare, Aplysia Californica, Amanda J. Watkins, Daniel A. Goldstein, Lucy C. Lee, Christina J. Pepino, Scott L. Tillett, Francis E. Ross, Elizabeth M. Wilder, Virginia A. Zachary, William G. Wright Jan 2010

Lobster Attack Induces Sensitization In The Sea Hare, Aplysia Californica, Amanda J. Watkins, Daniel A. Goldstein, Lucy C. Lee, Christina J. Pepino, Scott L. Tillett, Francis E. Ross, Elizabeth M. Wilder, Virginia A. Zachary, William G. Wright

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Studies of the neural mechanisms of learning, especially of sensitization, have benefitted from extensive research on the model species, Aplysia californica (hereafter Aplysia). Considering this volume of literature on mechanisms, it is surprising that our understanding of the ecological context of sensitization in Aplysia is completely lacking. Indeed, the widespread use of strong electric shock to induce sensitization (an enhancement of withdrawal reflexes following noxious stimulation) is completely unnatural and leaves unanswered the question of whether this simple form of learning has any ecological relevance. We hypothesized that sublethal attack by a co-occurring predator, the spiny lobster, Panulirus interruptus, might …

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Overwintering Of Cascades Frogs (Rana Cascadae) In Washington, April B. Barreca Jan 2010

Overwintering Of Cascades Frogs (Rana Cascadae) In Washington, April B. Barreca

All Master's Theses

This thesis begins with overview of amphibian declines, amphibians in the Pacific Northwest, and information about ranid overwintering. The second part of the study presents my research that tracked Cascades frogs (Rana cascadae) throughout the winter at a high-elevation site in Washington. Amphibians are declining around the world and little is known about their natural history. There are few overwintering studies on amphibians and no previous overwintering studies on Cascades frogs. Cascades frogs are declining throughout the southern portion of their range and an understanding of the basic ecology and biology of this species is urgently needed to …

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