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Estimating Feral Swine Abundance And Their Effects On Native Wildlife In The Mississippi Alluvial Valley, Matthew Ryan Ivey

Theses and Dissertations

Feral swine (Sus scrofa) are an invasive species in the Mississippi Alluvial Valley (MAV). They cause millions in damage annually to agriculture, and likely negatively affect native wildlife species. Using camera traps, I monitored 36 forest patches within the MAV to assess the effects of swine invasions on native wildlife species richness. I also modified the double-observer point count technique into a new method for estimating swine abundance with camera traps. Feral swine suppressed native vertebrate richness by 26% when compared to uninvaded patches. I validated the new double-observer technique by determining if it could detect an abundance-area relationship in …

The Combined Effects Of Soil Fertility And Soil Amendments On The Growth And Mycorrhizal Associations Of American Ginseng (Panax Quinquefolius), Emily Ann Murray

Masters Theses, 2010-2019

Arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF) are fungi that form symbiotic associations with 70-90% of plant families. They are known to allow for the extension of the root system as well as an increase in plant size by assisting with the uptake of nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus. The role that AMF play in plant health and success has led to the development of commercial inoculum, which is used in agricultural settings. However, soil fertility, and soil amendments are known to affect AMF and plant associations. This study intends to look at how cultivated American Ginseng seedlings are affected by commercial …

Population Dynamics Of The Threatened Staghorn Coral, Acropora Cervicornis, And The Development Of A Species-Specific Monitoring Protocol, Elizabeth Goergen

HCNSO Student Theses and Dissertations

Historically, Acropora cervicornis was found in high densities on many Caribbean, Florida, and Gulf of Mexico reefs. A disease outbreak in the late 1970s and 80s caused up to 99% loss of A. cervicornis cover at some sites, leaving populations sparsely distributed throughout its range and typically found as isolated colonies. Even though populations are depauperate causing a decrease in sexual reproduction, its fast growth rate and ability to reproduce through asexual fragmentation affords this species the potential for quick recovery and population growth. However, limited to no natural recovery has been documented. Many of these populations are poorly studied …

Cosm News, Georgia Southern University

College of Science & Mathematics: News & Publications (2012-2022)

• Bio Grad Student Wins 2018 Averitt Award for Research Excellence

Embracing An Ecological Conversion: Addressing The Effects Of The Ecological Crisis On The Poor And The Earth Through The Sacrament Of Reconciliation, Emmanuel Oyediran Ogundipe

Jesuit School of Theology Dissertations

In the last two hundred years, the whole of creation has suffered a great deal of abuse, violation and destruction that is threatening the continued existence of creation. This plundering of the earth has resulted in various changes and disasters in the universe ranging from climate change, air and water pollution, deforestation, loss of biodiversity, decline in the quality of the human life, and massive migration. It is through creation that God first reveals himself to humanity. Any abuse or violation of creation is a sin against God. Therefore, humanity, appointed as careers or stewards, have engaged in the exploitation …

Estimation Of Zero-Inflated Population Mean: A Bootstrapping Approach, Khyam Paneru, R. Noah Padgett, Hanfeng Chen

Mathematics and Statistics Faculty Publications

A mixture model was adopted from the maximum pseudo-likelihood approach under complex sampling designs to estimate the mean of zero-inflated population. To overcome the complexity and assumptions of asymptotic distribution, the maximum pseudolikelihood function was used, but a bootstrapping procedure was proposed as an alternative. Bootstrap confidence intervals consistently capture the true means of zero-inflated populations of the simulation studies.

Reconstructing Landscape Use Patterns Using Strontium Isotope Ratios, Marian Irene Hamilton

Anthropology ETDs

This dissertation uses modern habitats and fauna to model the variability and predictive power of strontium isotope ratios in identifying dispersal patterns in primates and habitat preference in primate and non-primate fauna. It concludes that there are significant isotopic differences between gallery forest and xeric grassland habitats in the same area and that these differences are reflected in fauna with habitat preferences for one or the other. It also identifies the most reliable methodological approaches for identifying the philopatric and dispersing sex in primate communities. Finally, it applies this methodological recommendation to strontium isotope data from South African hominins, concluding …

Niche Shifts, Species Distributions, And Genetic Diversity In Gymnophthalminae Lizards, With A Focus On Microclimates And Thermophysiology, Maria Strangas

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The environmental niche is a central organizing concept in the study of ecology and evolution, as the environmental conditions in which species can persist (their fundamental niches) and the conditions in which they occur (their realized niches) can shape spatial and temporal patterns of biodiversity at multiple scales. How organisms at different levels of biological organization are affected by environmental heterogeneity has consequences for the distribution of genetic and phenotypic diversity, yet the mechanisms through which this occurs are poorly studied. In this dissertation, I present three research chapters that explore how species’ traits and their microclimatic environments shape biodiversity …

T Socio-Ecology Of Managed Honeybees (Apis Mellifera) In The Louisville Metro Area., Haileigh M. Arnold

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Humans have a long history of the practice of beekeeping to harness the power of pollination. This managed pollinator system consists of beekeepers, honeybees, and their environment. However, recent disease, pesticide use, and land use factors honeybee threaten this relationship. In the face of such concerns it is important to examine the factors that impact and can help sustain our managed pollinator systems. In this thesis, the national and Kentucky state-level policies that affect managed pollinator systems were examined and socio-ecological factors that may contribute to honeybee hive growth and losses were assessed along an urban development gradient in Louisville, …

Nebraska Wetland Condition Assessment: Intensification Of The National Wetland Condition Assessment Throughout Nebraska, Cody Dreier

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

Even though wetlands provide a habitat for many plants and animals and numerous services for humans, they were not always treated as areas of value. Less than half of the United States’ pre-colonial wetlands have survived to the present day. Seeing a need to understand the remaining wetlands more fully, the Environmental Protection Agency developed the National Wetland Condition Assessment to monitor target wetlands throughout the country every five years.

This study is an intensification of the National Wetland Condition Assessment for Nebraska wetlands that allowed us to sample more areas of the state and gather additional information. During the …

Spatial Dynamics And Mixing Of Bluefin Tuna In The Atlantic Ocean And Mediterranean Sea Revealed Using Next-Generation Sequencing, Gregory N. Puncher, Alessia Cariani, Gregory E. Maes, Jeroen Van Houdt, Koen Herten, Rita Cannas, Naiara Rodriguez-Ezpeleta, Aitor Albania, Andone Estonba, Molly Lutcavage, Alex Hanke, Jay Rooker, James S. Franks, Joseph M. Quattro, Gualtiero Basilone, Igaratza Fraile, Urtzi Laconcha, Nicolas Goñi, Ai Kimoto, David Macías, Francisco Alemany, Simeon Deguara, Salem W. Zgozi, Fulvio Garibaldi, Isik K. Oray, Firdes Saadet Karakulak, Noureddine Abid, Miguel N. Santos, Piero Addis, Haritz Arrizabalaga, Fausto Tinti

Faculty Publications

The Atlantic bluefin tuna is a highly migratory species emblematic of the challenges associated with shared fisheries management. In an effort to resolve the species’ stock dynamics, a genomewide search for spatially informative single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) was undertaken, by way of sequencing reduced representation libraries. An allele frequency approach to SNP discovery was used, combining the data of 555 larvae and young‐of‐the‐year (LYOY) into pools representing major geographical areas and mapping against a newly assembled genomic reference. From a set of 184,895 candidate loci, 384 were selected for validation using 167 LYOY. A highly discriminatory genotyping panel of 95 …

Changes In Ant Biodiversity Across An Urban Gradient, Hao Brooks

Honors Theses

There are two aims to this study: compare diversity across an urban gradient and across seasons. We deployed traps and identified the collected 12 ant species at nine different sites centered at Chattanooga, Tennessee, for the purpose of relating levels of urbanization to the diversity of ant species at each site. We successfully sampled in the summer (June 27, 2017) and spring (March 31, 2018), and unsuccessfully sampled in winter (Feb. 16, 2018) when we collected zero ants, likely due to cold soil temperatures. To quantify “urbanization” we divided the sites into “Urban” core verses surrounding “Suburban” area using a …

A Contribution Toward A Global Monograph Of Gyroporus: Taxonomy, Phylogeny, Biogeography, Naveed Davoodian

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Gyroporus (Sclerodermatineae, Boletales, Agaricomycetes, Basidiomycota, Fungi) is a genus of ectomycorrhizal mushroom-forming fungi distributed throughout the world in suitable habitats. Previous attempts to untangle the diversity of this genus proved difficult due to the presence of semi-cryptic species and equivocal results from phylogenetic analysis of ribosomal RNA markers. To overcome these obstacles, a combined taxonomic and phylogenetic (emphasizing protein-coding genes) approach is used here to delimit species and elucidate geographic and evolutionary patterns of Gyroporus. Careful study of relevant literature and herbarium specimens was augmented by field work in North America, Australia, and East Asia for observation and collection …

Parasite Mind Control: How A Single Celled Parasite Carried In The Cat Intestine May Be Quietly Tweaking Our Behavior, Sophie Letcher

Scientific Kenyon: The Neuroscience Edition

No abstract provided.

Scientific Kenyon Neuroscience Edition (Full Issue)

Scientific Kenyon: The Neuroscience Edition

No abstract provided.

Quality Improvement: Assessing The Gaps In Education And Training Among Staff At Health, Education, And Law Project Hospital Sites In Nebraska, Michael Sauter

Capstone Experience: Master of Public Health

This research study was completed at Legal Aid of Nebraska’s Health, Education, and Law Project. The goal of this quality improvement study was to enhance the effectiveness of future Health, Education, and Law Project (HELP) training sessions for staff members of HELP sites in Nebraska. Through the use of an online survey tool, we received staff members’ input on the current training program, assessed their knowledge on relevant topics, and gave respondents an opportunity to include any appropriate suggestions. By means of this study, we were able to conclude that although staff members seemed to appreciate the training sessions overall, …

Maternal Vitamin D Deficiency And Early Childhood Health Outcomes Including Autism Development, Kelsey L. Girardelli

Undergraduate Honors Capstone Projects

Many studies have shown that vitamin D deficiency during pregnancy is associated with a variety of adverse maternal and pediatric outcomes. Disease outcomes that have been observed in pregnant women who are vitamin D deficient include increased risk of C-section, preeclampsia, bacterial vaginosis, and gestational diabetes. In children born to deficient mothers, increased rates of childhood asthma, type 1 diabetes, low birthweight, and autism spectrum disorder (ASD) have been observed. Although there is much evidence to support these correlations, much is yet to be understood regarding the etiology of these outcomes. This paper specifically examines the relationships between risk factors …

Estimating Animal Abundance By Employing An External Experiment To Account For Detection And Count Bias With An Application To Wintering Ducks In The Mississippi Alluvial Valley, April L. Thomas

All Dissertations

A valid concern when structuring an aerial survey of wildlife populations is the presence of visibility bias. Many studies attempt to correct for visibility bias by including additional parameters in estimators for wildlife abundance. Often these parameters are estimated through data collected during the aerial survey. Some, how-ever, have suggested using an external visibility experiment to estimate parameters being used to adjust for visibility bias. This work considers a bias adjusted estimator, proposed by Pearse et al. (2008), in which the bias correction parameters are esti-mated via an external visibility experiment using decoys in place of the live animals. The …

The Spatial And Temporal Domains Of Modern Ecology, Lyndon Estes, Paul R. Elsen, Timothy Treuer, Labeeb Ahmed, Kelly Caylor, Jason Chang, Jonathan J. Choi, Erle C. Ellis

Geography

To understand ecological phenomena, it is necessary to observe their behaviour across multiple spatial and temporal scales. Since this need was first highlighted in the 1980s, technology has opened previously inaccessible scales to observation. To help to determine whether there have been corresponding changes in the scales observed by modern ecologists, we analysed the resolution, extent, interval and duration of observations (excluding experiments) in 348 studies that have been published between 2004 and 2014. We found that observational scales were generally narrow, because ecologists still primarily use conventional field techniques. In the spatial domain, most observations had resolutions ≤1 m2 …

Seasonal Phenology, Distribution And Treatments For Polyphagotarsonemus Latus (Banks) On Primocane-Fruiting Blackberries (Rubus L. Subgenus Rubus) In Arkansas, Jessica Anne Lefors

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Worldwide, blackberries (Rubus L. subgenus Rubus) are an economically important crop. In 2007, Polyphagotarsonemus latus (Banks) (broad mites), were first reported damaging primocane-fruiting blackberries in Fayetteville, Arkansas. Since this time, broad mite damage to blackberries and yield loss has been reported in many states and countries. Despite the increasing reports of this blackberry pest, little is known about their population dynamics, and few treatments are available. Growers with broad mite populations need a pest management program to minimize yield loss. Therefore, there was a need to develop sampling techniques, describe broad mite seasonal phenology in blackberry fields, and determine efficacy …

Extraction Of Metazoan Meiofauna From Muddy Deep-Sea Samples: Operator And Taxon Effects On Efficiency, Melissa Rohal, David Thistle, Erin E. Easton

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

Deep-sea metazoan meiofaunal specimens are usually extracted from muddy samples by centrifugation in a fluid in which meiofauna tend to float and sediment particles tend to sink. Although the procedure is in common use, its efficiency has seldom been examined. The study reported here showed that well-trained operators extracted metazoan meiofauna with efficiencies that were different enough to be a concern in quantitative studies. Therefore, samples should be assigned to operators in a stratified-random manner. In the course of these studies, both operators also extracted individuals of the common nematode family Desmoscolecidae significantly less efficiently than other nematode families, a …

Ecological Studies Of Wolves On Isle Royale, 2017-2018, Rolf O. Peterson, John A. Vucetich, Sarah R. Hoy

Ecological Studies of Wolves on Isle Royale

Annual Report 2017-2018

Asymmetric Interference Competition Between Herbivorous Gastropods, Introduced Littorina Littorea And Indigenous L. Obtusata, Alysha B. Putnam, Paulette Peckol

Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Competitive interactions may affect distribution and abundance of mobile organisms, such as the intertidal herbivorous gastropods Littorina littorea and L. obtusata, in areas of resource overlap. We examined intra- and interspecific competition between US New England populations by measuring effects of snail density and food availability on growth rates and abundances. We investigated mechanisms of interference, including resistance (phlorotannin) induction of fucoid algae, and impacts of snail presence, waterborne cues, and mucus on herbivory. L. obtusata density increased significantly within fucoid canopies following repeated (every 12 h for 3 d) removal of L. littorea at both study sites. In the …

Sustainable Forest Bioenergy Development Strategies In Indochina: Collaborative Effort To Establish Regional Policies, Victor J. Bruckman, Maliwan Haruthaithanasan, Raymond O. Miller, Toru Terada, Anna-Katharina Brenner, Florian Kraxner, David J. Flaspohler

Michigan Tech Publications, Part 1

We conducted a feasibility study in Indochina (Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand, and Vietnam) with the aim of promoting biomass and bioenergy markets, technology transfer, rural development, and income generation. Policy development is guided by the International Union of Forest Research Institutions (IUFRO) Task Force “Sustainable Forest Bioenergy Network”. In this paper, we highlight the achievements up to now and present results of a multi-stakeholder questionnaire in combination with a quantitative analysis of the National Bioenergy Development Plans (NBDPs). We found a gap between official documents and working group assessments. NBDPs are focused on the market development, technology transfer, and funding …

Application Of Regression Model To Identify A Parameter That Best Defines Species Diversity In The Coastal Forests Of Tanzania, Cosmas Mligo

Tanzania Journal of Science

Coastal forests of Tanzania are diverse in plant species that make them included as part of the 34 world biodiversity hotspots. This study aimed atdetermining plant species diversity, richness, and evenness as well as to identify the parameter that best defines plant species diversity in the three coastal forests; namely Zaraninge, Kazimzumbwi and Pande. Transect method was used for vegetation data collection and subjected to Analysis of variance and regression techniques. The plant species composition among forests ranged between 75 and 146 with a significantly lower diversity index in Zaraninge (2.057 ± 0.112) than those in Pande (2.415 ± 0.022) …

Using Δ13c, Δ15n, And Δ2h To Better Understand The Ecology Of Green Sea Turtles, Laura Pagès Barceló

Biology ETDs

Many green sea turtle populations are slowly recuperating from a recent severe decline due to anthropogenic factors including human consumption and mortality related to the fishing industry. Despite being charismatic animals that have been extensively studied, there is still a limited understanding of their feeding strategies and diet plasticity. This research explores the use of hydrogen isotopes in marine ecosystems to better understand green sea turtle ecology. This study is presented in two chapters: I first examined the trophic discrimination factor (D²H_NET) for hydrogen isotope (d²H) as a tool to correct hydrogen isotope data …

Research Support Infrastructure: Implementing A Clinical Research Coordinating Center, Julio A. Ramirez, Paula Peyrani, William A. Mattingly, Forest W. Arnold, Timothy L. Wiemken, Robert R. Kelley, Leslie A. Wolf, Ruth M. Carrico, The Clinical Research Coordinating Center Team

The University of Louisville Journal of Respiratory Infections

Insufficient infrastructure is one of the challenges facing investigators in the field of clinical research. At the University of Louisville (UofL) Division of Infectious Diseases, we developed a multidisciplinary coordinating center with the aim to support investigators in all aspects of the clinical research process. The objective of this article is to describe the composition and the role of the different units of the UofL Clinical Research Coordinating Center. The different components of the Center can serve as a template for institutions interested in developing a clinical research support infrastructure.

Research Support Infrastructure: Implementing A Clinical Research Coordinating Center, Julio A. Ramirez, Paula Peyrani, William A. Mattingly, Forest W. Arnold, Timothy L. Wiemken, Robert R. Kelley, Leslie A. Wolf, Ruth M. Carrico, Andrea Reyes-Vega

Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Insufficient infrastructure is one of the challenges facing investigators in the field of clinical research. At the University of Louisville (UofL) Division of Infectious Diseases, we developed a multidisciplinary coordinating center with the aim to support investigators in all aspects of the clinical research process. The objective of this article is to describe the composition and the role of the different units of the UofL Clinical Research Coordinating Center. The different components of the Center can serve as a template for institutions interested in developing a clinical research support infrastructure.

Linguistic Political Ecology With The Ngäbe Indigenous People Of Panama, Ginés A. Sánchez Arias

LSU Doctoral Dissertations

Indigenous communities from all corners of the globe live in uncertain times. From the vantage point of their “remote" lands, they undergo some of globalization’s most harmful externalities. Their homes become increasingly harder to maintain as extractive industries, development schemes, clandestine land grabs, and national bureaucracies encroach creating new colonial lands. First by assimilation, and then integration, these processes systematically undermine indigenous culture and autonomy. In place of such destructive coloniality, indigenous societies shelter unique ecological and linguistic knowledge that continues to serve their progress. This research applies lessons learned from studying with Ngäbe communities of western Panama, towards a …

Asymmetric Biotic Interactions And Abiotic Niche Differences Revealed By A Dynamic Joint Species Distribution Model, Nina K. Lany, Phoebe Zarnetske, Erin M. Schliep, Robert N. Schaeffer, Colin M. Orians, David A. Orwig, Evan L. Preisser

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

A species’ distribution and abundance are determined by abiotic conditions and biotic interactions with other species in the community. Most species distribution models correlate the occurrence of a single species with environmental variables only, and leave out biotic interactions. To test the importance of biotic interactions on occurrence and abundance, we compared a multivariate spatiotemporal model of the joint abundance of two invasive insects that share a host plant, hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA; Adelges tsugae) and elongate hemlock scale (EHS; Fiorina externa), to independent models that do not account for dependence among co‐occurring species. The joint model revealed …