Digital Commons Network^™

Black Vulture Conflict And Management In The United States: Damage Trends, Management Overview, And Research Needs, Bryan M. Kluever, Morgan B. Pfeiffer, Scott C. Barras, Brett G. Dunlap, Lee A. Humberg

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Contrary to rapid declines of many vulture (Accipitridae, Cathartidea) species worldwide, black vulture (Coragyps atratus) populations are increasing and expanding their range in North America. Vultures exhibit complex behaviors and can adapt to any human-dominated landscape or land use. These traits, combined with population growth and range expansion, have contributed to increased human–vulture conflicts. Our goal was to summarize the current status and trends in human–black vulture conflicts (hereafter human–vulture conflicts), review available management strategies, identify knowledge gaps, and provide recommendations to enhance management and understanding of this species and the associated conflicts. We found human–vulture conflicts are …

Core Commitments For Field Trials Of Gene Drive Organisms, Kanya C. Long, Luke Alphey, George J. Annas, Cinnamon S. Bloss, Karl J. Campbell, Jackson Champer, Chun-Hong Chen, Amit Choudhary, George M. Church, James P. Collins, Kimberly L. Cooper, Jason A. Delborne, Owain R. Edwards, Claudia I. Emerson, Kevin Esvelt, Sam Weiss Evans, Robert M. Friedman, Valentino M. Gantz, Fred Gould, Sarah Hartley, Elizabeth Heitman, Janet Hemingway, Hirotaka Kanuka, Jennifer Kuzma, James V. Lavery, Yoosook Lee, Marce Lorenzen, Jeantine E. Lunshof, John M. Marshall, Philipp W. Messer, Craig Montell, Kenneth A. Oye, Megan J. Palmer, Philippos Aris Papathanos, Prasad N. Paradkar, Antoinette J. Piaggio, Jason L. Rasgon, Gordana Rašić, Larisa Rudenko, J. Royden Saah, Maxwell J. Scott, Jolene T. Sutton, Adam E, Vorsino, Omar S. Akbari

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

We must ensure that trials are scientifically, politically, and socially robust, publicly accountable, and widely transparent.

Gene drive organisms (GDOs), whose genomes have been genetically engineered to spread a desired allele through a population, have the potential to transform the way societies address a wide range of daunting public health and environmental challenges. The development, testing, and release of GDOs, however, are complex and often controversial. A key challenge is to clarify the appropriate roles of developers and others actively engaged in work with GDOs in decision-making processes, and, in particular, how to establish partnerships with relevant authorities and other …

Restoring Rain Use Efficiency To An Incised Upland Valley System In Namibia Using Filters And Ecosystem Management Understanding (Emu) Principles, K. Shamathe, H. J. R. Pringle, I. Zimmermann

IGC Proceedings (1977-2023)

No abstract provided.

Early Life History Of Tarpon (Megalops Atlanticus) In South Carolina Estuaries: Assessment Of Juvenile Recruitment And Validity Of Aging And Back-Calculation Methods, Garrett M. Elmo

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Hormonal Responses To Seasonal Thermal And Ecological Stressors In Japanese Macaques (Macaca Fuscata), Lilianne Nelson

Masters Theses

Relative to most primate species, Japanese macaques (Macaca fuscata) experience extreme seasonal variation in thermal and ecological stressors that can impact energetic demands. To cope with these environmental changes, levels of metabolic hormones, such as cortisol and triiodothyronine, fluctuate to facilitate energetic adjustments. While previous research in primates has investigated thermal and ecological stressors individually, a combined assessment of these stressors alongside hormone levels can provide a more holistic understanding of the relationship between a primate’s thermoregulation, energetic balance, and stress. The goals of this study were to determine the effects of season, temperature and ecological stress on …

Novel Polymorphisms Of Zrsr2 And Gpm6b Gene Homologs And Their Use In Sex Identification Of Bovine And Porcine Species, Evan K. Peterson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Accurate and cost-effective PCR based sex identification is important in animal production because it gives producers the ability to determine the sex of embryos prior to transfer, saving time and money. The most efficient PCR sex identification assays work by using a single primer pair to amplify a specific target region located on the Y-chromosome and a second, separate target region on the X-chromosome.

This thesis reports the design of two novel assays. The first assay was designed to target the Zinc finger CCCH-type, RNA binding motif and serine/arginine rich 2 (ZRSR2) gene found on the X-chromosome and its Y-chromosome …

Past, Current, And Future Potential Distributions Of Red Spruce And Fraser Fir Forests In The Southern Appalachians: Interpreting Possible Impacts Of Climate Change, Danika Mosher

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Spruce-Fir forests are relicts from the Pleistocene and can only be found within the Southern Appalachians. Analyzing the relationships between species distribution, climatic parameters, topography, and biotic interactions through ecological niche modeling creates prediction maps for conservation efforts. Maxent, Boosted Regression, and Random Forest were utilized to compare which model and variable combinations best approximate the unique mountain forest environment. Maxent with a bias file produced optimal results and was used to examine distributional changes that may occur in the future and how these changes compare to paleo-environmental distributions. Fraser fir has shown evidence of being influenced by changing climates …

Validating A Common Tick Survey Method: Cloth‑Dragging And Line Transects, Pia L. Kjellander, Malin Aronsson, Ulrika A. Bergvall, Josep L. Carrasco, Madeleine Christensson, Per-Eric Lindgren, Mikael Åkesson, Petter Kjellander

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Library Materials

Cloth-dragging is the most widely-used method for collecting and counting ticks, but there are few studies of its reliability. By using cloth-dragging, we applied a replicated line transects survey method, in two areas in Sweden with different Ixodes ricinus tick-densities (low at Grimsö and high at Bogesund) to evaluate developmental stage specific repeatability, agreement and precision in estimates of tick abundance. ‘Repeatability’ was expressed as the Intraclass Correlation Coefficient (ICC), ‘agreement’ with the Total Deviation Index (TDI) and ‘precision’ by the coefficient of variation (CV) for a given dragging distance. Repeatability (ICC) and agreement (TDI) were higher for the most …

A Microbiome Analysis Of The Relationship Among Crayfish Ectosymbionts And Their Environment, John Hoverson

Senior Honors Theses

The purpose of this project was to determine if there are differences present between the α-diversities of the crayfish microbiome and its surrounding water and sediment. Furthermore, this project sought to discover if these differences hold when microbiomes are evaluated between crayfish of first and second stream orders. Finally, this project sought to determine if the presence of branchiobdellidan ectosymbionts on the crayfish caused further differences in the crayfish microbiome. While the hypothesized patterns between crayfish, ectosymbionts, and stream order were not found to exist, a significantly different microbiome was observed between water, sediment, and crayfish, and the α-diversity of …

Genotyping Validates The Efficacy Of Photographic Identification In A Capture-Mark-Recapture Study Based On The Head Scale Patterns Of The Prairie Lizard (Sceloporus Consobrinus), Sarah A. Tomke, Chris J. Kellner

Forestry and Natural Resources Graduate Research

Population studies often incorporate capture‐mark‐recapture (CMR) techniques to gather information on long‐term biological and demographic characteristics. A fundamental requirement for CMR studies is that an individual must be uniquely and permanently marked to ensure reliable reidentification throughout its lifespan. Photographic identification involving automated photographic identification software has become a popular and efficient noninvasive method for identifying individuals based on natural markings. However, few studies have (a) robustly assessed the performance of automated programs by using a double‐marking system or (b) determined their efficacy for long‐term studies by incorporating multi‐year data. Here, we evaluated the performance of the program Interactive Individual …

A Multi‑Disciplinary Comparison Of Great Ape Gut Microbiota In A Central African Forest And European Zoo, Victor Narat, Katherine R. Amato, Noémie Ranger, Maud Salmona, Séverine Mercier‑Delarue, Stephanie Rupp, Philippe Ambata, Richard Njouom, François Simon, Tamara Giles‑Vernick, Jérôme Legoff

Publications and Research

Comparisons of mammalian gut microbiota across different environmental conditions shed light on the diversity and composition of gut bacteriome and suggest consequences for human and animal health. Gut bacteriome comparisons across different environments diverge in their results, showing no generalizable patterns linking habitat and dietary degradation with bacterial diversity. The challenge in drawing general conclusions from such studies lies in the broad terms describing diverse habitats (“wild”, “captive”, “pristine”). We conducted 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequencing to characterize intestinal microbiota of free-ranging sympatric chimpanzees and gorillas in southeastern Cameroon and sympatric chimpanzees and gorillas in a European zoo. We conducted …

Functional Review And Macrostructure Of The Caecum In Ardeidae, Lola R. Mildren

All HCAS Student Capstones, Theses, and Dissertations

Situated on the lower digestive tract, caeca typically project cranially from the juncture of the small and large intestine. Recent studies have proposed that the role of caeca in the avian system is to act as fermentation chambers to synthesize vitamins, modulate gut microflora, and absorb nutrients; however, functionality differs with diet. Caeca are a typical characteristic of the avian gastrointestinal tract, with varying sizes and shapes, or even rudimentary or absent in some species. Caeca are notably singular and relatively small in Ardeids. Morphometric consistency in the number and presence of caeca on the lower intestinal tract of Ardeids …

Landscape-Scale Differences Among Cities Alter Common Species’ Responses To Urbanization, Mason Fidino, Travis Gallo, Elizabeth W. Lehrer, Maureen H. Murray, Cria Kay, Heather A. Sander, Brandon Macdougall, Carmen M. Salsbury, Travis J. Ryan, Julia L. Angstmann, J. Amy Belaire, Barbara Dugelby, Chris Schell, Theodore Stankowich, Max Amaya, David Drake, Sheryl H. Hursh, Adam A. Ahlers, Jacque Williamson, Laurel M. Hartley, Amanda J. Zellmer, Kelly Simon

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Understanding how biodiversity responds to urbanization is challenging, due in part to the single-city focus of most urban ecological research. Here, we delineate continent-scale patterns in urban species assemblages by leveraging data from a multi-city camera trap survey and quantify how differences in greenspace availability and average housing density among 10 North American cities relate to the distribution of eight widespread North American mammals. To do so, we deployed camera traps at 569 sites across these ten cities between 18 June and 14 August. Most data came from 2017, though some cities contributed 2016 or 2018 data if it was …

Spotted Owls And Forest Fire: Comment, Gavin M. Jones, R. J. Gutiérrez, William M. Block, Peter C. Carlson, Emily J. Comfort, Samuel A. Cushman, Raymond J. Davis, Stephanie A. Eyes, Alan B. Franklin, Joseph L. Ganey, Shaula Hedwall, John J. Keane, Rodd Kelsey, Damon B, Lesmeister, Malcolm P. North, Susan L. Roberts, Jeremy T. Rockweit, Jamie S. Sanderlin, Sarah C. Sawyer, Ben Solvesky, Douglas J. Tempel, Ho Yi Wan, A. Leroy Westerling, Gary C. White, M. Zachariah Peery

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Western North American forest ecosystems are experiencing rapid changes in disturbance regimes because of climate change and land use legacies (Littell et al. 2018). In many of these forests, the accumulation of surface and ladder fuels from a century of fire suppression, coupled with a warming and drying climate, has led to increases in the number of large fires (Westerling 2016) and the proportion of areas burning at higher severity (Safford and Stevens 2017, Singleton et al. 2018). While the annual area burned by fire is still below historical levels (Taylor et al. 2016), some forest types in the west …

Predators As Agents Of Selection And Diversification, Jerald B. Johnson, Mark C. Belk

Faculty Publications

Predation is ubiquitous in nature and can be an important component of both ecological and evolutionary interactions. One of the most striking features of predators is how often they cause evolutionary diversification in natural systems. Here, we review several ways that this can occur, exploring empirical evidence and suggesting promising areas for future work. We also introduce several papers recently accepted in Diversity that demonstrate just how important and varied predation can be as an agent of natural selection. We conclude that there is still much to be done in this field, especially in areas where multiple predator species prey …

Hypogean Communities As Cybernetic Systems: Implications For The Evolution Of Cave Biotas, Aldemaro Romero Jr.

Publications and Research

Ramón Margalef proposed in 1968 that ecosystems could be better understood if they were viewed as cybernetic systems. I tested this hypothesis in the case of hypogean ecosystems using available pieces of evidence. I looked on how information on feedbacks, stability, succession, organization, diversity, and energy flows in the hypogean environment fit the cybernetics hypothesis. The results were that there are convincing arguments that the application of the concept of cybernetics in biospeleology can be beneficial to broadening our understanding of cave biota in terms of their structure. I also make the case that this approach can provide more clarity …

Comparison Of Native And Non-Native Predator Consumption Rates And Prey Avoidance Behavior In North America And Europe, Ayse Gül Ünlü, John J. Obrycki, Roman Bucher

Entomology Faculty Publications

Novel predator–prey interactions can contribute to the invasion success of non-native predators. For example, native prey can fail to recognize and avoid non-native predators due to a lack of co-evolutionary history and cue dissimilarity with native predators. This might result in a competitive advantage for non-native predators. Numerous lady beetle species were globally redistributed as biological control agents against aphids, resulting in novel predator–prey interactions. Here, we investigated the strength of avoidance behavior of the pea aphid (Acyrthosiphon pisum) toward chemical cues of native lady beetles and non-native Asian Harmonia axyridis and European Coccinella septempunctata and Hippodamia variegata …

Distinct Distribution Of Archaea From Soil To Freshwater To Estuary: Implications Of Archaeal Composition And Function In Different Environments, Hualong Wang, Raven Bier, Laura Zgleszewski, Marc Peipoch, Emmanuel Omondi, Atanu Mukherjee, Feng Chen, Chuanlun Zhang, Jinjun Kan

Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Faculty Research

In addition to inhabiting extreme territories, Archaea are widely distributed in common environments spanning from terrestrial to aquatic environments. This study investigated and compared archaeal community structures from three different habitats (representing distinct environments): agriculture soils (from farming system trials FST, PA, United States), freshwater biofilms (from White Clay Creek, PA, United States), and estuary water (Chesapeake Bay, United States). High-throughput sequencing of 16S rRNA genes indicated that Thaumarchaeota, Euryarchaeota, Nanoarchaeota, Crenarchaeota, and Diapherotrites were the commonly found dominant phyla across these three environments. Similar to Bacteria, distinct community structure and distribution patterns for Archaea were observed in soils vs. …

Wetland Edge Trampled By American Bison (Bos Bison) Used As Basking Site For Painted Turtles (Chrysemys Picta), Keith Geluso, Carter Kruse, Mary Harner

Transactions of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences and Affiliated Societies

Prairies of the Great Plains once were influenced by large-scale disturbances, such as fire and herbivory by large ungulates, that promoted ecosystem functioning. American Bison (Bos bison) created many types of disturbances as they traversed grassland landscapes. Trampling, a common type of bison disturbance, occurred when large herds moved through an area denuding aboveground vegetation, exposing prairie soils, and restarting succession. Bison reintroductions now allow researchers to use contemporary observations to examine influences of these large, hoofed mammals on system functions. Herein, we report on the immediate benefit of trampling along a wetland edge for another vertebrate species. …

Artificial Nightlight Alters The Predator–Prey Dynamics Of An Apex Carnivore, Mark A. Ditmer, David C. Stoner, Clinton D. Francis, Jesse R. Barber, James D. Forster, David M. Choate, Kirsten E. Ironside, Kathleen M. Longshore, Kent R. Hersey, Randy T. Larsen, Brock R. Mcmillan, Daniel D. Olson, Alyson M. Andreasen, Jon P. Beckmann, P. Brandon Holton, Terry A. Messmer, Neil H. Carter

Life Sciences Faculty Research

Artificial nightlight is increasingly recognized as an important environmental disturbance that influences the habitats and fitness of numerous species. However, its effects on wide‐ranging vertebrates and their interactions remain unclear. Light pollution has the potential to amplify land‐use change, and as such, answering the question of how this sensory stimulant affects behavior and habitat use of species valued for their ecological roles and economic impacts is critical for conservation and land‐use planning. Here, we combined satellite‐derived estimates of light pollution, with GPS‐data from cougars Puma concolor (n = 56), mule deer Odocoileus hemionus (n = 263) and locations of cougar‐killed …

Bioinformatic Analysis Of Venom Proteins From Dasymutilla Occidentalis, Eva Gunawan

Theses and Dissertations

Venom proteins have been found in a wide range of species in the animal kingdom. These venoms serve various functions such as defense against predators, hunting for food, and parasitism for reproduction. Because of their diverse functions, venom proteins are utilized in agrochemical treatments for protection from pests as well as treatments to control human diseases. Venoms, including those coming from a range of insect species, have been manipulated for these purposes, but many remain uncharacterized. Currently, one of the orders that venom-based research is focusing on are parasitoids from the order Hymenoptera. The purpose of some venom proteins in …

Reinstatement Of Andrena Vernalis Mitchell (Hymenoptera: Andrenidae) From Synonymy With A. Ziziae Robertson, Zachary M. Portman, Ian G. Lane, Gabriella L. Pardee, Daniel P. Cariveau

The Great Lakes Entomologist

Andrena (Micrandrena) ziziae Robertson, 1891 (Andrenidae) is a well-known species found in a variety of habitats in the eastern and central United States and adjacent southern Canada. Andrena (Micrandrena) vernalis Mitchell, 1960 was described from five female specimens in the eastern United States and was synonymized with A. ziziae by Ribble in 1968. Recently collected specimens from throughout Minnesota have revealed that A. ziziae sensu Ribble is actually two species, one of which matches A. vernalis. Here, we reinstate A. vernalis as a valid species and describe the previously unknown male. We provide diagnostic characters …

Host-Use Patterns Of Canopy-Inhabiting Click Beetles (Coleoptera: Elateridae) In A Lowland Rainforest In Southern Venezuela, Susan Kirmse, Paul J. Johnson

Insecta Mundi

The arboreal click beetle fauna (Coleoptera: Elateridae) in a lowland tropical rainforest in south­ern Venezuela was observed and collected by means of a tower crane for a full year. The evaluation of the elaterid assemblage is part of a general survey of Coleoptera associated with several canopy trees. The Elat­eridae represented the tenth most species-rich beetle family in the canopy of the crane plot and was therefore selected for a detailed analysis of host-use patterns. In total, 20 species of Elateridae with 402 adult indi­viduals were sampled, including seven singletons. Species were either flower visiting (Aeolus Eschscholtz and Cosmesus …

The Role Of Microhabitats In Structuring Cave Invertebrate Communities In Guatemala, Gabrielle S.M. Pacheco, Marconi Souza Silva, Enio Cano, Rodrigo L. Ferreira

International Journal of Speleology

Several studies have tried to elucidate the main environmental features driving invertebrate community structure in cave environments. They found that many factors influence the community structure, but rarely focused on how substrate types and heterogeneity might shape these communities. Therefore, the objective of this study was to assess which substrate features and whether or not substrate heterogeneity determines the invertebrate community structure (species richness and composition) in a set of limestone caves in Guatemala. We hypothesized that the troglobitic fauna responds differently to habitat structure regarding species richness and composition than non-troglobitic fauna because they are more specialized to live …

Homicide And Drug Trafficking In Impoverished Communities In Brazil, Elenice De Souza Oliveira, Braulio Figueiredo Alves Da Silva, Flavio Luiz Sapori, Gabriela Gomes Cardoso

Department of Justice Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

Many studies demonstrate that homicides are heavily concentrated in impoverished neighborhoods, but not all socially disadvantaged neighborhoods are hotbeds of violence. Conducted in Belo Horizonte, Brazil, this study hypothesizes that the association between high rates of homicide and impoverished areas is influenced by the emergence of a specific type of street drug-dealing common to favelas (slums). The study applies econometric techniques to police data on homicides and drug arrests from 2008 to 2011, as well as 2010 Census data, to test its hypothesis. The findings provide insight into the development of crime prevention policies in areas of high social vulnerability.

Fire As A Fundamental Ecological Process: Research Advances And Frontiers, Megan Cattau

Human-Environment Systems Research Center Faculty Publications and Presentations

1. Fire is a powerful ecological and evolutionary force that regulates organismal traits, population sizes, species interactions, community composition, carbon and nutrient cycling and ecosystem function. It also presents a rapidly growing societal challenge, due to both increasingly destructive wildfires and fire exclusion in fire‐dependent ecosystems. As an ecological process, fire integrates complex feedbacks among biological, social and geophysical processes, requiring coordination across several fields and scales of study.
2. Here, we describe the diversity of ways in which fire operates as a fundamental ecological and evolutionary process on Earth. We explore research priorities in six categories of fire ecology: (a) characteristics …

Phyr: Anrpackage For Phylogenetic Species-Distribution Modelling In Ecological Communities, Daijiang Li, Russell Dinnage, Lucas A. Nell, Matthew R. Helmus, Anthony Ives

Faculty Publications

Model-based approaches are increasingly popular in ecological studies. A good example of this trend is the use of joint species distribution models to ask questions about ecological communities. However, most current applications of model-based methods do not include phylogenies despite the well-known importance of phylogenetic relationships in shaping species distributions and community composition. In part, this is due to a lack of accessible tools allowing ecologists to fit phylogenetic species distribution models easily. To fill this gap, therpackagephyr(pronounced fire) implements a suite of metrics, comparative methods and mixed models that use phylogenies to understand and predict community composition and other …

The Roles Of Host Species, Geographic Scale And Environmental Stressors In Shaping The Composition Of Coral Microbiomes, Alicia Marie Riegel Parker

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Reef-building corals are long-lived and may take many centuries to adapt, making them especially susceptible to climate change. However, corals host microbial symbionts that can change quickly, potentially speeding acclimation. My dissertation aimed to determine the degree of coevolution and flexibility between corals and their microbiomes among hosts, across space, and in response to stress.

Microbial communities are usually surveyed by sequencing the 16S rRNA gene, however the PCR primers used also amplify coral DNA, thereby limiting prokaryotic read coverage. To mitigate this contamination, I designed a peptide nucleic acid clamp that increased the recovery of bacterial reads by 2-11x …

Measurements Of Indoor Radon Concentrations In Selected Educational Institutions And Homes In Jericho City - Palestine, Khalil Thabayneh, Walid Khalilia, Anwar Jaradat

Hebron University Research Journal-A (Natural Sciences) - (مجلة جامعة الخليل للبحوث- أ (العلوم الطبيعيه

In this study, the indoor radon concentrations (CRn), and other radiological effects on some educational institutions and homes in Jericho city, Palestine were investigated. Nuclear track detector type CR-39 (SSNTD) was used to measure track density of alpha particles emitted from radon and its progeny. The radon concentrations in the corresponding buildings have been found to vary from 27.8 to 962, 20.5 to 391 and 43.8 to177 Bqm-3 ; with average values of 142.5, 97.6 and 110.0 Bqm-3 in Al-Istiqlal University, schools, and homes and kindergarten, respectively. The highest and lowest of radon concentrations were found in the first and …

Effect Of Host-Plant Species On The Survival, Adult Longevity And Fertility Of Predatory Bug, Macrolophus Caliginosus Wagner [Hemiptera: Miridae, عبد الجليل حمدان

Hebron University Research Journal-A (Natural Sciences) - (مجلة جامعة الخليل للبحوث- أ (العلوم الطبيعيه

Two laboratory experiments were carried out under controlled conditions. First expperiment was to study the development and survival of nymphs of Macrolophus caliginnosus Wagner, when offered clean leaf-discs of tobacco, eggplant, tomato, pepper or Pelargonium peltatium only. The second experiment was to study the adult longevity and fertility of M. caliginosus offered greenhouse whitefly Trialeurodes vaporariorum (Westwood) (GHWF), on different host-plant. Although newly hatched M. caliginosus nymphs did not survive on plant sap alone, adults could live and even produce offspring. However, when M. caliginosus offered these plants as oviposition sites and fed on T. vaporariorum infestation, the intrinsic rate …