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Mother-Young Recognition In An Ungulate Hider Species: A Unidirectional Proce, Marco V.G. Torriani, Elisabetta Vannoni, Alan G. Mcelligott

Veterinary Science and Medicine Collection

Parent‐offspring recognition is usually crucial for survival of young. In mammals, olfaction often only permits identification at short range, and vocalizations are important at longer distances. Following and hiding antipredator strategies found in newborn mammals may also affect parental recognition mechanisms. We investigated mother‐offspring recognition in fallow deer, an ungulate hider species. We analyzed the structure of adult female and fawn contact calls to determine whether they are individually distinctive and tested for mother‐offspring recognition. Only females (and not fawns) have individualized vocalizations, with the fundamental frequency as the most distinctive parameter. Playback experiments showed that fawns can distinguish the …

Monthly Accomplishments For Turnbull National Refuge, September 2006, Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge

Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge Reports

A monthly report of accomplishments at Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge written by Project Leader Nancy Curry.

2006 Annual Report, Donald Duszynski

Annual Reports

No abstract provided.

Distribution, Morphology, And Genetic Affinities Of Dwarf Embedded Fucus Populations From The Northwest Atlantic Ocean, Arthur C. Mathieson, Clinton J. Dawes, Aaron L. Wallace, Anita S. Klein

New Hampshire Agricultural Experiment Station Publications

Dwarf embedded Fucus populations in the Northwest Atlantic Ocean are restricted to the upper intertidal zone in sandy salt marsh environments; they lack holdfasts and are from attached parental populations of F. spiralis or F. spiralis x F. vesiculosus hybrids after breakage and entanglement with halophytic marsh grasses. Dwarf forms are dichotomously branched, flat, and have a mean overall length and width of 20.3 and 1.3 mm, respectively. Thus, they are longer than Irish (mean 9.3 mm) and Alaskan (mean 15.0 mm) populations identified as F cottonii. Reciprocal transplants of different Fucus taxa in a Maine salt marsh confirm that …

Deep-Water Antipatharians: Proxies Of Environmental Change, B. Williams, M.J. Risk, S.W. Ross, K.J. Sulak

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

Deep-water (307–697 m) antipatharian (black coral) specimens were collected from the southeastern continental slope of the United States and the north-central Gulf of Mexico. The sclerochronology of the specimens indicates that skeletal growth takes place by formation of concentric coeval layers. We used 210Pb to estimate radial growth rate of two specimens, and to establish that they were several centuries old. Bands were delaminated in KOH and analyzed for carbon and nitrogen stable isotopes. Carbon values ranged from _16.4‰ to _15.7‰; the oldest specimen displayed the largest range in values. Nitrogen values ranged from 7.7‰ to 8.6‰. …

Alien Invaders! Pre-Visit, Support Materials: Introduced And Invasive Species (Grade 6), Discover Mojave: Forever Earth

Curriculum materials (FE)

Worksheets to accompany pre-visit lesson about invasive fish.

Champions Of Change: Reinventing Democracy Through Land Law Reform, John R. Nolon

Pace Environmental Law Review

No abstract provided.

Education In The Environment: A Hands-On Student Research And Outdoor Learning Experience: Quarterly Progress Report: Period Ending August 31, 2006, Margaret N. Rees

Reports (PLI Education)

During the past three months, the focus of the university’s efforts has included the following highlights:

• Forever Earth was scheduled for 13 days and benefited 110 individuals.
• The National Park Service piloted the concept of using Forever Earth as a mobile visitor center during busy summer weekends. During five outings, Park Service interpreters contacted 1,365 visitors.
• Forever Earth curricula for 5th, 6th, and 7th grades have been completed.
• A Preliminary Implementation Plan was created by the SNAP Conservation Education and Interpretation team.
• A report on the Clark County School District Teacher Survey: Attitudes, Perceptions, Barriers, and Desires for Field Trip …

Plant Composition And Erosion Potential Of A Grazed Wetland In The Salmon River Subbasin, Idaho, Kristine N. Hopfensperger, Joan Q. Wu, Richard A. Gill

Western North American Naturalist

Wetlands are dynamic habitats with many unique, important functions including filtering sediments and providing diverse habitats for fish and wildlife. Wetlands in the western United States are particularly important because they offer habitat for a number of protected runs of endangered fish species. Historically, livestock grazing has altered wetland and riparian area form and function by facilitating exotic species invasions, altering spatial heterogeneity of vegetation, and increasing erosion. In this study we examined vegetation structure and erosion potential in a wetland meadow exposed to unregulated grazing along Deer Creek in the Salmon River subbasin, Idaho. We characterized the vegetation composition …

Changes In Microbial Community Structure Of Petroleum Contaminated Sediments Are Reflected In Subsurface Geophysical Signatures, Jonathan P. Allen

Masters Theses

Petroleum contamination of sediments leads to dynamic changes in the subsurface. These include changes in the microbiota as well as in the subsurface geophysical and geochemical properties. Anomalously high conductivity values observed in subsurface zones contaminated with light non aqueous phase liquids (LNAPLs) have been suggested to be the result of microbial activity. Therefore, we investigated the interdependence between geoelectrical signatures and microbial community structure in petroleum contaminated field sediments and laboratory column experiments. Spatial and temporal changes in electrical conductivity of the subsurface paralleled changes in microbial community composition, with the highest conductivity values concomitant with specific anaerobic hydrocarbon-degrading …

Then The Burning Began: Omaha, Riots, And The Growth Of Black Radicalism, 1966-1969, Ashley M. Howard

Student Work

Throughout the 1960s, America witnessed one metropolis after another suffer from major civil disturbances. The first of these incidents occurred in Selma, Alabama, but it was not until Watts, California exploded that the nation began to take notice. As America was throttling towards a major race war, nobody anticipated the Midwestern town of 'Omaha, Nebraska to experience the same disturbances larger cities had. Although the life of average Omaha blacks was better than that of many of their urban counterparts, black Omahans still faced frequent job discrimination, lack of adequate educational facilities, and general disenchantment with Northern ghetto life. Between …

Understanding Political Ecologies Of Land Use Change Using Household Surveys In Mankweng, South Africa, Joshua Edward Rutkowski

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Mankweng, Limpopo, South Africa has experienced a large population growth since its inception in the late 1950s. The impacts of land use changes in the area are far reaching and have a wide range of influences. This paper documents the historical and political pressures affecting Mankweng as the township progresses into the 21st Century. Household surveys were conducted in 2005 and 2006 in order to understand the geographic relationships of the area. This study found household surveys to be beneficial in understanding land use change.

Examining The Structural Covariates Of Methamphetamine Use: A Social Disorganization Perspective, Justin Smith

Masters Theses

There have been many anecdotal accounts describing the characteristics of individuals involved in methamphetamine use, trafficking and production. However, prior to the current study there was yet to be a macro-level analysis of methamphetamine use. The extant macro-level literature on drug use has suggested that areas with high levels of social disorganization experience high rates of drug use. It was expected that school-districts with low SES and high rates of ethnic heterogeneity, residential instability and family disruption will experience high rates of methamphetamine use. In addition, it was expected that rural school districts would show higher rates than urban and …

Diversity And Abundance Of Small Mammals In The Serengeti Kopjes, Tanzania, C. D. Timbuka, J. D. Kabigumila

Tanzania Journal of Science

Diversity and abundance of small mammals in the Serengeti kopjes were studied between November 2000 and February 2002. From 22,500 trap-nights and 3,300 bucket-nights, 4,903 small mammals in 18 species, 14 genera, 6 families and 3 orders were recorded. Muridae was the most dominant family with nine species. The highest number of species was recorded in the Maasai (14), Mbuzi Mawe (13) and Seronera (12) kopjes. The least number of species recorded in the Simba, Barafu and Wogakuria kopjes, with eight species each. Species diversity was highest in the Maasai kopjes (H'=2.337) and lowest in the Wogakuria kopjes (H'=1.794), with …

Patterns Of Scleractinian Health In Broward County, Florida, Melody J. White

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

This study was survey of disease distribution and abundance relating to coral diseases present in Broward County. Data of the 1330 scleractinian coral individuals found, 88 showed signs of disease. 19 coral species, 3 diseases and bleaching were represented. Diseases affected 9 of the species. Bleaching was the most common disease noted in this survey, followed by dark spot, red band, and yellow band.

Disease distribution appears to be scattered on the reef system. No apparent patterns were found when grouped by reef or corridor locations. MDS cluster analysis revealed a clumping of disease, but this was not correlated with …

The Combination Of Ecological And Case-Control Data, Sebastien Haneuse, Jon Wakefield

UW Biostatistics Working Paper Series

Ecological studies, in which data are available at the level of the group, rather than at the level of the individual, are susceptible to a range of biases due to their inability to characterize within-group variability in exposures and confounders. In order to overcome these biases, we propose a hybrid design in which ecological data are supplemented with a sample of individual-level case-control data. We develop the likelihood for this design and illustrate its benefits via simulation, both in bias reduction when compared to an ecological study, and in efficiency gains relative to a conventional case-control study. An interesting special …

The Combination Of Ecological And Case-Control Data, Sebastien Haneuse, Jon Wakefield

UW Biostatistics Working Paper Series

Ecological studies, in which data are available at the level of the group, rather than at the level of the individual, are susceptible to a range of biases due to their inability to characterize within-group variability in exposures and confounders. In order to overcome these biases, we propose a hybrid design in which ecological data are supplemented with a sample of individual-level case-control data. We develop the likelihood for this design and illustrate its benefits via simulation, both in bias reduction when compared to an ecological study, and in efficiency gains relative to a conventional case-control study. An interesting special …

Dealing With Uncertainty And Sensitivity Issues In Process-Based Models Of Carbon And Nitrogen Cycles In Northern Forest Ecosystems, G. R. Larocque, J. S. Bhatti, A. M. Gordon, N. Luckai, Jinxun Liu, Shuguang Liu, P. A. Arp, C. -F Zhang, Alexander Komarov, Pavel Grabarnik, M. Wattenbach, C. Peng, Jianfeng Sun, Thomas White

International Congress on Environmental Modelling and Software

Many process-based models on carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) cycles have been developed for northern forest ecosystems. These models are widely used to evaluate the long-term decisions in forest management dealing with effects like particulate pollution, productivity and climate change. Regarding climate change, one of the key questions that have sensitive political implications is whether northern forests will sequester atmospheric C or not. Whilst many process-based models have been tested for accuracy by evaluating or validating against observed data, few have dealt with the complexity of the incorporated procedures to estimate uncertainties associated with model predictions or the sensitivity of …

Identification Of Anopheles (Nyssorhynchus) Marajoara (Diptera: Culicidae) In Bolivia Using Polymerase Chain Reaction And A Restriction Endonuclease, Gary Fritz, C. L. Brelsfoard, R. Rodriguez

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

Anopheles (Nyssorhynchus) marajoara Galvão & Damasceno (Diptera: Culicidae) is a member of the Albitarsis cryptic species complex and is a primary vector of human Plasmodium in parts of Brazil. We report the first record of An. marajoara in the department of Cochabamba and confirm its presence in the department of Santa Cruz, Bolivia. We also describe a PCR protocol producing a single amplicon (≈340 bp) of a section of the internal transcribed spacer 2 specific for members of the Albitarsis species complex; the polymerase chain reaction protocol did not amplify the DNA of 17 other species in the subgenus Nyssorhynchus. …

Soil Microbial Community Composition As Affected By Restoration Practices In California Grassland, Rebecca E. Drenovsky, Martin Pothoff, Kerri L. Steenwerth, Louise E. Jackson, Rainer G. Joergensen, Kate M. Scow

Biology

Agricultural practices have strong impacts on soil microbes including both the indices related to biomass and activity as well as those related to community composition. In a grassland restoration project in California, where native perennial bunchgrasses were introduced into non-native annual grassland after a period of intensive tillage, weeding, and herbicide use to reduce the annual seed bank, microbial community composition was investigated. Three treatments were compared: annual grassland, bare soil fallow, and restored perennial grassland. Soil profiles down to 80cm in depth were investigated in four separate layers (0–15, 15–30, 30–60, and 60–80cm) using both phospholipid ester-linked fatty acid …

American Society Of Parasitologists Newsletter, V. 28, No. 2, Late Spring 2006., Scott Lyell Gardner

American Society of Parasitologists: Newsletter

An issue of the American Society of Parasitologists' quarterly newsletter, also called the Journal of Parasitology Newsletter.

Monthly Accomplishments For Turnbull National Refuge, July 2006, Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge

Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge Reports

A monthly report of accomplishments at Turnbull National Wildlife Refuge written by Project Leader Nancy Curry.

New Directions And Challenges In Spatial Dynamic Modelling Of Ecosystem Functions In Heterogeneous Landscapes As Basis For A Better Sustainable Landscape Management, Karl-Otto Wenkel, Ralf Wieland, Wilfried Mirschel

International Congress on Environmental Modelling and Software

The aim of this paper is to discuss scientific challenges and new possibilities for a better modelling of consequences of land use changes in heterogeneous landscapes on ecosystem functions in space and time. The landscape or regional scale means an area of about 100 km2 up to some 1000 km2. Main problems on this scale are high complexity, structural diversity, ecological heterogeneity and uncertainty in data, in understanding of the process dynamic and by uncertainty in models.

New Directions And Challenges In Spatial Dynamic Modelling Of Ecosystem Functions In Heterogeneous Landscapes As Basis For A Better Sustainable Landscape Management, Karl-Otto Wenkel, Ralf Wieland, Wilfried Mirschel

International Congress on Environmental Modelling and Software

The aim of this paper is to discuss scientific challenges and new possibilities for a better modelling of consequences of land use changes in heterogeneous landscapes on ecosystem functions in space and time. The landscape or regional scale means an area of about 100 km2 up to some 1000 km2. Main problems on this scale are high complexity, structural diversity, ecological heterogeneity and uncertainty in data, in understanding of the process dynamic and by uncertainty in models.

Dealing With Uncertainty And Sensitivity Issues In Process-Based Models Of Carbon And Nitrogen Cycles In Northern Forest Ecosystems, G. R. Larocque, J. S. Bhatti, A. M. Gordon, N. Luckai, Jinxun Liu, Shuguang Liu, P. A. Arp, C. -F Zhang, Alexander Komarov, Pavel Grabarnik, M. Wattenbach, C. Peng, Jianfeng Sun, Thomas White

International Congress on Environmental Modelling and Software

Many process-based models on carbon (C) and nitrogen (N) cycles have been developed for northern forest ecosystems. These models are widely used to evaluate the long-term decisions in forest management dealing with effects like particulate pollution, productivity and climate change. Regarding climate change, one of the key questions that have sensitive political implications is whether northern forests will sequester atmospheric C or not. Whilst many process-based models have been tested for accuracy by evaluating or validating against observed data, few have dealt with the complexity of the incorporated procedures to estimate uncertainties associated with model predictions or the sensitivity of …

Species-Habitat Associations In A Sri Lankan Dipterocarp Forest, C. V.S. Gunatilleke, I. A.U.N. Gunatilleke, S. Esufali, K. E. Harms, P. M.S. Ashton, D. F.R.P. Burslem, P. S. Ashton

Faculty Publications

Forest structure and species distribution patterns were examined among eight topographically defined habitats for the 205 species with stems ≥ 1 cm dbh inhabiting a 25-ha plot in the Sinharaja rain forest, Sri Lanka. The habitats were steep spurs, less-steep spurs, steep gullies and less-steep gullies, all at either lower or upper elevations. Mean stem density was significantly greater on the upper spurs than in the lower, less-steep gullies. Stem density was also higher on spurs than in gullies within each elevation category and in each upper-elevation habitat than in its corresponding lower-elevation habitat. Basal area varied less among habitats, …

Does A Specialist Parasitoid Adapt To Its Host On A New Host Plant?, A. Roßbach, B. Löhr, S. Vidal

All Peer-Reviewed Publications

The host plant expansion of a diamondback moth, Plutella xylostella (L.) (DBM) strain to snowpea (Pisum sativum L.) raised the question whether a specialist parasitoid Diadegma semiclausum (DS) could be conditioned to locate and parasitize its host on the new host plant. In a specialist parasitoid a behavioural change towards a plant outside the normal host plant range of its host due to developmental experience is not expected. The responsive behaviour, parasitism rates and fitness of three subsequent DS generations were investigated on the snowpea-strain of DBM. After three generations of DS on the pea 62.5% of females chose an …

Linking Scales In Stream Ecology, Winsor H. Lowe, Gene E. Likens, Mary E. Power

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

The hierarchical structure of natural systems can be useful in designing ecological studies that are informative at multiple spatial scales. Although stream systems have long been recognized as having a hierarchical spatial structure, there is a need for more empirical research that exploits this structure to generate an understanding of population biology, community ecology, and species-ecosystem linkages across spatial scales. We review studies that link pattern and process across multiple scales of stream-habitat organization, highlighting the insight derived from this multiscale approach and the role that mechanistic hypotheses play in its successful application. We also describe afrontier in stream research …

Acculturation And Breast Density In Foreign-Born, U.S. Chinese Women, Marilyn Tseng, Celia Byrne, Kathryn A. Evers, W. Thomas London, Mary B. Daly

Kinesiology and Public Health

The role of acculturation in the breast cancer risk increase among U.S. Chinese women is unclear. We examined the association between acculturation and breast density in a sample of foreign-born, U.S. Chinese women and examined factors that may explain such an association. Between January 2002 and May 2003, 212 Chinese women were recruited from Philadelphia region screening programs. Cranial-caudal mammographic images were classified into one of four categories ranging from ‘‘entirely fatty’’ to ‘‘extremely dense.’’ Questionnaires assessed information on sociodemographic, cultural, reproductive, and lifestyle factors. An index of acculturation was created based on self-reported English proficiency and within-and cross-ethnicity social …

Anadromous Rainbow Smelt And Tomcod In Connecticut: Assessment Of Populations, Conservation Status, And Need For Restoration Plan, Heather A. Fried, Eric T. Schultz

EEB Articles

(beginning of rainbow smelt executive summary)

Evidence indicates that anadromous rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordax) populations in Connecticut and elsewhere in the northeast United States have severely declined. Several sampling programs have documented declines in Connecticut’s smelt populations over the last three decades (Marcy 1976a, Marcy 1976b, Millstone Environmental Laboratory 2005). Similar declines have also been documented in the Hudson River (ASA Analysis & Communication 2005) and in Massachusetts (personal communication, Brad Chase, MA Division of Marine Fisheries 2004). Recreational and commercial fisheries in the region for this species have virtually ceased (Blake and Smith 1984). The Connecticut Fish Advisory Committee …