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Enlarged Hind Wings Of The Neotropical Butterfly Pierella Helvina (Nymphalidae) Enhance Gliding Flight Performance In Ground Effect., Marc Stylman

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

Flight is a vital component of butterfly natural history, and flight-associated morphology is thought to be under strong selection for the performance of critical behaviors such as patrolling, courtship and oviposition. However, while different behaviors require different proportions of flapping versus gliding flight, few studies actually quantify butterfly flight behavior. Moreover, as butterfly flight is anteromotoric, no prior study has measured the role of hind wing allometry in flight. Using high-speed videography, this study compares the flight of two species of Haeterini (Nymphalidae) that regularly employ gliding flight. We also employ stereo videography and experimental hind wing area reduction to …

Carbon Control On Terrestrial Ecosystem Function Across Contrasting Site Productivities: The Carbon Connection Revisited, Nicholas C. Dove, John M. Stark, Gregory S. Newman, Stephen C. Hart

Ecology Center Publications

Understanding how altered soil organic carbon (SOC) availability affects microbial communities and their function is imperative in predicting impacts of global change on soil carbon (C) storage and ecosystem function. However, the response of soil microbial communities and their function to depleted C availability in situ is unclear. We evaluated the role of soil C inputs in controlling microbial biomass, community composition, physiology, and function by (1) experimentally excluding plant C inputs in situ for 9 yr in four temperate forest ecosystems along a productivity gradient in Oregon, USA; and (2) integrating these findings with published data from similar C‐exclusion …

Review Of Grosphus Simon, 1880, With Description Of Teruelius Gen. N., A New Buthid Genus From Madagascar (Scorpiones: Buthidae), Graeme Lowe, František Kovařík

Euscorpius

We review the taxonomy of the Madagascar endemic buthid genus Grosphus Simon, 1880. We split the genus and describe Teruelius gen. n. on the basis of nine morphological characters, six of them new for Grosphus: positions of trichobothria d₂ on pedipalp femur and Eb₃ on chela manus, number of pectine teeth, shape of female basal pectinal tooth, form of hemispermatophore capsule posterior lobe, spiracle shape, metasoma I ventromedian carination, telotarsal setation and UV fluorescence. We discuss functional and taxonomic aspects of these characters, and propose that Teruelius gen. n. is monophyletic, while Grosphus (sensu stricto) is paraphyletic. …

Scorpions Of The Horn Of Africa (Arachnida, Scorpiones). Part Xx. Barbaracurus Feti Sp. N. From Somaliland (Buthidae), František Kovařík, Graeme Lowe, František Šťáhlavský, Ali Abdi Hurre

Euscorpius

Barbaracurus feti sp. n. from Somaliland is described and compared with other species of the genus. Additional information is provided on the taxonomy and distribution of the genus Barbaracurus, fully complemented with color photos of specimens of both sexes of the new species, as well as of their habitat. In addition to morphology and hemispermatophores, we also describe the karyotypes of B. feti sp. n. (2n=23). Included is a key for Barbaracurus. Babycurus borellii Rossi, 2019 is synonymized with Barbaracurus yemenensis Kovařík et al., 2018 syn. n. as a junior synonym because the description dated in February 2018 …

Enclosures And Dichotomies: Coexistence Vs. Distance In The Poems Of John Clare, Jordan P. Finn

Theses and Dissertations

John Clare’s poetry emphasizes an affinity with environment by suspending the distinction between the inside (subject) and the outside (object). Clare’s identification with objects and perception rather than subjects and aesthetics renders his work as a prescient and radical example of ecological poetry in the Romantic period. Raymond Williams’ “green language” and Timothy Morton’s ambient poetics both cite Clare as an ideal figure for their above theories and evoke Clare as a writer who positions the environment as governing thought rather than thought governing the environment. This thesis especially relates Clare to Morton’s Ecology without Nature, a study of …

Ecological Interventions To Prevent And Manage Zoonotic Pathogen Spillover, Susanne H. Sokolow, Nicole Nova, Kim M. Pepin, Alison J. Peel, Juliet R.C. Pulliam, Kezia Manlove, Paul C. Cross, Daniel J. Becker, Raina K. Plowright, Hamish Mccallum, Giulio A. De Leo

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Spillover of a pathogen from awildlife reservoir into a human or livestock host requires the pathogen to overcome a hierarchical series of barriers. Interventions aimed at one or more of these barriers may be able to prevent the occurrence of spillover. Here, we demonstrate how interventions that target the ecological context in which spillover occurs (i.e. ecological interventions) can complement conventional approaches like vaccination, treatment, disinfection and chemical control. Accelerating spillover owing to environmental change requires effective, affordable, durable and scalable solutions that fully harness the complex processes involved in cross-species pathogen spillover.

This article is part of the theme …

Scavenging In The Anthropocene: Human Impact Drives Vertebrate Scavenger Species Richness At A Global Scale, Esther Sebastián‐González, Jomar Magalhães Barbosa, Juan M. Pérez‐García, Zebensui Morales‐Reyes, Francisco Botella, Pedro P. Olea, Patricia Mateo‐Tomás, Marcos Moleón, Fernando Hiraldo, Eneko Arrondo, José A. Donázar, Ainara Cortés‐Avizanda, Nuria Selva, Sergio A. Lambertucci, Aishwarya Bhattacharjee, Alexis Brewer, Erin Abernethy, Olin E. Rhodes Jr., Kelsey Turner, James C. Beasley, Travis L. Devault, Andrés Ordiz, Camilla Wikenros, Barbara Zimmermann, Petter Wabakken, Christopher C. Wilmers, Justine A. Smith, Corinne J. Kendall, Darcy Ogada, Evan R. Buechley, Ethan Frehner, Maximilian L. Allen, Heiko U. Wittmer, James R.A. Butler, Johan T. Du Toit, John Read, David Wilson, Klemen Jerina, Miha Krofel, Rich Kostecke, Richard Inger, Arockianathan Samson, Lara Naves‐Alegre, José A. Sánchez‐Zapata

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Understanding the distribution of biodiversity across the Earth is one of the most challenging questions in biology. Much research has been directed at explaining the species latitudinal pattern showing that communities are richer in tropical areas; however, despite decades of research, a general consensus has not yet emerged. In addition, global biodiversity patterns are being rapidly altered by human activities. Here, we aim to describe large‐scale patterns of species richness and diversity in terrestrial vertebrate scavenger (carrion‐consuming) assemblages, which provide key ecosystem functions and services. We used a worldwide dataset comprising 43 sites, where vertebrate scavenger assemblages were identified using …

The Economic Impacts Of Blackbird (Icteridae) Damage To Sunflower In The Usa, Karina Ernst, Julie Elser, George Linz, Hans Kandel, Jason Holderieath, Samantha Degroot, Steven Shwiff, Stephanie Shwiff

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

BACKGROUND: Blackbird (Icteridae) damage to ripening sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) has been a persistent economic issue in the USA for the last five decades. To quantify losses, we surveyed blackbird damage from 2001 to 2013 (excluding 2004) to physiologically mature sunflower in eight states: North Dakota, South Dakota, Texas, Nebraska, Minnesota, Colorado, Kansas, and Vermont.

RESULTS:We pooled data gathered during the most recent 5 years (2009 to 2013) of the survey and found losses averaged $US2.5 million and $US11.3 million for confectionery and oilseed hybrids, respectively. Three states, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Nebraska, had sufficient acreage and bird damage …

Play Behavior And The Development Of Boldness And Caution In Juvenile Belding’S Ground Squirrels (Urocitellus Beldingi), Madelene Shehan

Master's Theses

The ubiquity of play among juvenile mammals suggests it provides adaptive benefits, potentially through influences on the development of temperament in young animals. Juvenile Belding’s ground squirrels (Urocitellus beldingi) must balance competing demands for boldness and caution imposed by the fundamental trade-off between their short active season and their vulnerability to predation. In this study, I evaluated whether play helps to facilitate the development of an appropriate balance between boldness and caution in juvenile U. beldingi.I observed the play behavior of juvenile U. beldingiand conducted flight-initiation distance tests to measure boldness-caution at the beginning and toward …

Frogs Hiding In Plain Sight: Phylogenetic Systematics Of Myanmar’S Occidozyga Species Complex, And The Identification Of A Novel Species, Allison Bogisich

Master's Theses

Different species can be difficult to distinguish from one another when they are morphologically similar. Such cryptic species are the reason many anuran species go undetected. For this study, the taxonomic identity of the Occidozyga complex across Myanmar was investigated. An integrated approach was used combining molecular, morphological and phylogeographic data to better assess its taxonomy. Results indicate the presence of three new candidate species within Occidozyga, and three evolutionarily significant unit (ESU) lineages. Two mitochondrial gene fragments (16S, COI) and one nuclear gene fragment (Rhodopsin) were examined from DNA isolated from forty-seven preserved specimens from the California Academy …

Examining Genetic And Ecological Differentiation Of An Endemic Plant Species Found Across The Hawaiian Archipelago, Psychotria Mariniana, Tiffany L. Kho

Master's Theses

Speciation is a fundamental evolutionary process that remains poorly understood. Speciation ultimately begins with population divergence, so we can elucidate the complexities of speciation by first understanding the process and drivers of population divergence. To conduct population-level analyses, ecologists and evolutionary biologists have turned to island systems, primarily for their geographic orientation and high endemism. The Hawaiian archipelago is home to over 8,700 endemic species making it a great natural laboratory to study species diversification at the population level. The Hawaiian Psychotria (kōpiko, or wild coffee) make up 11 of these species and have been used to understand colonization and …

Phylogenetic Inference Of Multiscale Selection Pressures Using A Continuous State Birth-Death Process, Marco Hamins-Puertolas, David Rasmussen

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Characterizing The Permanence And Stationary Distribution For A Family Of Malaria Stochastic Models, Divine Wanduku

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Predator Diversity On Optimal Communities For Prey Suppression, Amanda N. Laubmeier

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

Habitat Selection By American Beaverat Multiple Spatial Scales, Guiming Wang, Lance F. Mcclintic, Jimmy D. Taylor

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Background: Semiaquatic mammals require both aquatic and terrestrial habitats, particularly interfaces between the two habitats. As ecosystem engineers, American beaver (Castor canadensis) consume and fell a great amount of deciduous trees. We tested the prediction that open water and amounts of food resources, including hardwood forests (i.e., deciduous trees as the dominant form of vegetation), herbaceous and woody wetlands, and shrubs, would influence the second-order habitat selection (i.e., placing home ranges on the landscape) by American beaver, whereas the third-order habitat selection of American beaver would be associated with woody wetland and shrub edges. We investigated hierarchical habitat selection by …

Response To Conspecific Alarm Cues By Spotted Salamander (Ambystoma Maculatum) Larvae, Katlyn M. Gardner

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Detection of predators early in a predation sequence may allow prey to increase their probability of survival by taking evasive action. For aquatic species in ephemeral ponds visibility is often limited, so predation risk assessment via chemical cues can be useful. Most mole salamanders of the genus Ambystoma breed in vernal ponds, and larvae suffer high mortality rates due in part to high levels of predation. I tested whether larvae can assess predation risk by detecting chemicals (alarm cues) released from the skin of damaged conspecifics, and, if so, what factors influence the response to this alarm cue. Field-caught spotted …

Territorial Behavior Of The Ozark Zigzag Salamander, Plethodon Angusticlavius, Altered By Mode Of Predator Cue And Sex Of Intruder, Sarah E. Heimbach

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Territorial defense in many species must be balanced with trade-offs in activities such as reproduction and predator avoidance. Adjusting behavior based on current assessments of predation risk and the cost of maintaining or gaining a territory is one way that individuals can balance trade-offs to maximize fitness. I conducted two experiments to determine how Ozark zigzag salamanders, Plethodon angusticlavius, adjust their territorial behavior-based predation risk. First, I tested whether male and female territorial intruders changed their competitive behavior according to whether predation risk is assessed via unimodal (chemical) or multimodal (chemical + physical) cues. Females and males responded differently to …

Recovery Of Domestic Behaviors By A Parasitic Ant (Formica Subintegra) In The Absence Of Its Host (Formica Subsericea), Amber Nichole Hunter

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

Dulosis is a type of social parasitism in which a parasitic ant has become dependent on captured workers (hosts) of a closely related species. Dulosis can be either facultative or obligate depending on the degree of dependence on host workers. As parasites become more specialized over evolutionary time, their domestic abilities degenerate until they become unable to survive without the host. However, the ‘lost’ behaviors may display some degree of recovery when host workers are unavailable to do the tasks. The Formica sanguinea group consists of 12 species of parasitic ants, which are all traditionally considered to be facultative parasites. …

Vertical Connectivity Influences Secondary Production, Community Diversity, And Resilience In An Ozark Stream, Nathan C. Dorff

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The hyporheic zone, a key component of stream vertical connectivity, supports stream function (e.g., nutrient regeneration) and provides habitat for aquatic biota. The Ozark Highlands ecoregion contains gravel-bed streams that have extensive hyporheic zones and that are subject to recurrent flash floods. I sampled Leuctra tenuis(Pictet) nymphs from the hyporheic habitat (30-45 cm below the streambed) in a gravel-bed reach and an intermittent tributary of an Ozark stream from early instar to adult emergence. Concurrently, I sampled benthic insects in two reaches of the same stream that differed primarily in amount of hyporheic habitat (bedrock vs. gravel) and monitored …

Stress And Body Composition Of Juvenile Alligator Snapping Turtles (Macrochelys Temminckii), Brandon Scott Tappmeyer

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The alligator snapping turtle (Macrochelys temminckii), is a species of conservation concern that is the subject of multiple head-start and reintroduction efforts across its range. In captive propagation programs, producing offspring that are in optimal physiological condition maximizes the likelihood of success after release. The purpose of my study was to compare stress and body composition between one free-ranging reintroduced population and two captive populations. The two captive populations were both housed in southern Oklahoma, but one group was reared indoors whereas the other inhabited outdoor ponds at a national fish hatchery. I used circulating glucocorticoid (corticosterone) concentrations as an …

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Phylogeographic Relationships Of Coereba Flaveola And Their Malaria Parasites, Meghann Humphries

Dissertations

This dissertation is broadly focused on elucidating how the geographic structure and demographic changes in host and parasite populations relate to one another, and how such interactions contribute to the generation and maintenance of biological diversity.

I begin by investigating the population structure of the Coereba flaveola (bananaquit) population within Puerto Rico, which is the apparent source of several expansions of the species into the Lesser Antilles. These findings indicate that both island and taxon effects influence the observed demographic changes. Because susceptibility to antagonists is related to both host species-specific characteristics and to geographical location, coevolutionary outcomes of these …

Comparison Of Some Epigean And Troglobiotic Animals Regarding Their Metabolism Intensity. Examination Of A Classical Assertion, Tatjana Simčič, Boris Sket

International Journal of Speleology

This study determines oxygen consumption (R), electron transport system (ETS) activity and R/ETS ratio in two pairs of epigean and hypogean crustacean species or subspecies. To date, metabolic characteristics among the phylogenetic distant epigean and hypogean species (i.e., species of different genera) or the epigean and hypogean populations of the same species have been studied due to little opportunity to compare closely related epigean and hypogean species. To fill this gap, we studied the epigean Niphargus zagrebensis and its troglobiotic relative Niphargus stygius, and the epigean subspecies Asellus aquaticus carniolicus in comparison to the troglobiotic subspecies Asellus aquaticus cavernicolus …

Epidemic Growth Rates And Host Movement Patterns Shape Management Performance For Pathogen Spillover At The Wildlife–Livestock Interface, Kezia R. Manlove, Laura M. Sampson, Benny Borremans, E. Frances Cassirer, Ryan S. Miller, Kim M. Pepin, Thomas E. Besser, Paul C. Cross

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Managing pathogen spillover at the wildlife–livestock interface is a key step towards improving global animal health, food security and wildlife conservation. However, predicting the effectiveness of management actions across host–pathogen systems with different life histories is an on-going challenge since data on intervention effectiveness are expensive to collect and results are system-specific.We developed a simulation model to explore how the efficacies of different management strategies vary according to host movement patterns and epidemic growth rates. The model suggested that fast-growing, fast-moving epidemics like avian influenza were best-managed with actions like biosecurity or containment, which limited and localized overall spillover risk. …

Density And Species Richness Of Macrofaunal Benthic Bivalves In North Inlet Estuary, South Carolina, Richard Hawley, Juliana Harding

Honors Theses

Marine benthic bivalves are consumed by higher trophic levels. Bivalve species richness and density depend on temperature, salinity, and location. Biweekly core samples were collected from Bly Creek from 12/2017 to 12/2018. Benthic macrofaunal bivalves were counted and identified to describe density and species richness. Bivalves were also photographed for species identification. Bivalves composed 0% to 17% of the total macrofauna. The maximum bivalve density (8,149 bivalves/m²) was recorded on December 23, 2018. The fewest bivalves were observed from December 2017 through March 2018. Eight bivalve species were recorded during 2018; at least one species was present year-round. …

Demersal Fish Use Of Printed Oyster Shells As Nesting Habitat In North Inlet Estuary, Sc, Annie Boyd, Juliana Harding

Honors Theses

Temperate estuarine blenny species establish subtidal territories and nesting sites. Four blenny species co-occur in North Inlet, SC including the striped blenny, Chasmodes bosquianus, crested blenny, Hypleurochilus geminatus, feather blenny, Hypsoblennius hentzi, and freckled blenny, Hypsoblennius ionthas. All four fishes use empty oyster (Crassostrea virginica) shells as nesting sites. Current 3D printer technology was used to create standard nest substrates to describe relationships between blenny habitat use and nest site dimensions. Replicate printed shells of 2 gape widths (5, 7 mm) for each of 2 shell cavity volumes (22 mL, 15mL, Oyster A and …

See The Forest For The Leaves: Foliar Fungal Community Composition And Volatile Organic Compound Production, Joshua Copeland

Master's Theses

Endophytes are microbes that live within plants without causing detectable illness. These microorganisms can emit volatile organic compounds (VOCs), airborne signaling molecules that can significantly affect plant growth. Despite the prevalence of endophytes and their VOCs, little is known about these factors important to plant health. With this in mind I isolated fungal endophytes from leaves of Populus trichocarpa and Populus fremontii, tree species with economic and environmental uses, to determine if endophyte communities are reserved between the closely related tree species and over seasons. Surface sterilized leaf fragments were plated onto malt extract agar and the resulting fungi were …

The Effects Of Constructed Wetlands On Metal Solubilization And Bioavailability In Passive Mine Remediation, Elizabeth Cochran

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The legacy of coal mining in Appalachia has left many watersheds impacted by abandoned mine drainage. The drainage degrades streams, groundwater and habitats with acidity and toxic heavy metals. The Lowber Passive Remediation System has been in operation since 2004 to remediate high amounts of dissolved Fe, SO₄, Al, and Mn. The site consists of six settling ponds and an extensive wetlands at the finish. This study investigated the resolubilization of Fe and Mn in the wetlands and the role of bacteria in resolubilization. During three seasons, field measurements of water quality and lab analysis of Fe, Mn, …