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Cover, Editorial Staff, Journal Information

Human–Wildlife Interactions

This includes the cover, editorial staff, and journal information.

Livestock Depredation By Leopards, Associated Economic Losses, And Financial Compensation To Communities In Chhota Udepur District Of Central Gujarat, India, Shalu Mesaria, Pratik Desai, Shruti Patel, Dhaval Gadhavi, Anthony J. Giordano, Nishith Dharaiya

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Livestock depredation by large carnivores has been documented across the entire Indian subcontinent. The failure of managers to mitigate livestock losses in landscapes dependent on subsistence agriculture poses a threat to the conservation of carnivores. For much of Gujarat, a western Indian state characterized by extensive semi-arid habitats, the Indian leopard (Panthera pardus fusca) is considered an apex predator. Increasing regional leopard populations in response to protection efforts has led to more attacks on humans, along with an increase in rates of livestock depredation. In many cases, the regional forest department financially compensates livestock owners for depredation caused …

Cover, Editorial Staff, Journal Information

Human–Wildlife Interactions

This includes the cover, editorial staff, and journal information.

An Automatic System To Evaluate Bait Station Visitation By Brown Treesnakes And Mongooses, Robert T. Sugihara, William C. Pitt, Are R. Berentsen, Francis L. Benevides Jr.

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Understanding the temporal, spatial, and behavioral patterns of the free-ranging target species in response to candidate baits and baiting strategies is important to ensure control success. This information can also assist in the development and deployment of feeding stations and can exclude non-target species while constituting effective bait delivery and control strategies for certain invasive animals, especially at environmentally sensitive sites. We used passive integrated transponder (PIT) tags in conjunction with very-high frequency radio-telemetry to remotely record bait station visitations and evaluate bait attractiveness in separate field research studies of brown treesnakes (Boiga irregularis) on Andersen Air Force …

Cover, Editorial Staff, Journal Information

Human–Wildlife Interactions

This includes the cover, editorial staff, and journal information.

An Ecological Approach To Data Governance, Jasmine Mcnealy

Notre Dame Journal of Law, Ethics & Public Policy

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of Weather Events On Dengue Fever In Brazil 2014-2022, Maryclare Gabel

All ETDs from UAB

Dengue fever is a mosquito-borne infectious disease that is spread through the bite of an infected Aedes aegypti or Aedes albopictus mosquito. Half the world's population lives in a dengue fever risk zone. There are an estimated 100 million symptomatic dengue fever cases each year, with 40,000 deaths reported. Brazil reports the highest annual dengue fever cases in Latin America. In 2022, Brazil recorded 2.36 million dengue fever cases, the highest number of cases ever recorded in the country. We designed a retrospective ecological study to evaluate the temporal trends and the association between weather events and dengue fever incidence …

Implementing And Evaluating A Higher Resolution Weather Dataset On A Coupled Hydrological-Crop Model, Diego Andres Quintero Puentes

Theses

Climate change and climate variability stand as threats to agriculture, especially in low-income countries. Crop models, which simulate crop growth and development, can be used to support decision making in water and agriculture in the context of an uncertain and variable climate. RHEAS is a modeling framework that integrates a hydrologic model, a crop model, and satellite-based observations. It uses gridded input data as forcing variables for the estimation of land surface fluxes and regional crop yield. One of the input datasets is the meteorology dataset, which contains temperature and wind speed data. RHEAS includes the NCEP reanalysis dataset as …

Patterns, Mechanisms, And Characterization Of Carbon Cycling Stability Following Partial Forest Disturbance, Kayla C. Mathes

Theses and Dissertations

Among the most essential questions in the era of climate change is how the forest carbon (C) cycle will respond to an increase in the extent of biotic disturbances from insects and pathogens. While research has focused on stand-replacing disturbance regimes, less is known about C cycling stability following partial disturbances that produce gradients of disturbance severity. Belowground C cycling responses to disturbance are especially poorly understood, even though temperate forest soils contain up to 50% of total ecosystem C and soil respiration (R_s) accounts for more than half of temperate forest C loss. Interpreting trends and mechanisms …

Excess Body Weight And It’S Association To Diabetes Mortality Among Florida Adults, Shivanie M. Sharma

High Impact Practices Student Showcase Fall 2023

“Excess Body Weight and Its Association to Diabetes Mortality” is a topic that has been highly studied and researched. However, there has yet been a study that looks at excess body weight and its association to Diabetes Mortality among Florida Adults. Specifically, by utilizing data from the Florida Health Charts. This includes the analyzation by Person (Florida Blacks versus Whites), Place (Florida counties), and Time (rate of diabetes mortality though the years in Florida). This study further provides information on the idea of the “obesity paradox.” But, it also sheds light on the implications and limitations based on previous epidemiological …

Evaluating Nurse Engagement With And Opportunities For Human Papillomavirus (Hpv) Vaccine Promotion In Montana, Juthika Jayendra Thaker

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Purpose: Parental vaccine hesitancy is a known driver of sub-optimal vaccine uptake in the United States.1 Even though a study analyzing parental responses in National Immunization Survey-Teen found that HPV vaccine hesitancy has slightly declined (69% in 2010 v/s 63% in 2019) over the years, only about 52.6% of adolescents in Montana had received all the required doses of the HPV vaccine series in 2021.2,3 Nurses are at the forefront of healthcare provision and possess a unique ability to influence parental vaccine decisions.5 By listening to and addressing parents' concerns about immunizations, nurses can dispel misinformation and help change parents' …

Linking Life History And Population Dynamics Of An Ice-Associated Seabird, The Kittlitz’S Murrelet (Brachyramphus Brevirostris), Michelle Lynn Kissling

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Mechanistic understanding of population dynamics requires linking population change and demographic processes. However, for some species, accurate estimation of population parameters can be difficult owing to their life histories, resulting in reduced or biased inference. Mobile species that are not territorial or use dynamic habitats are susceptible to estimation problems arising from variable exposure to sampling, or temporary emigration, and common approaches to account for it like robust design are not feasible. The outcome is a population mismatch whereby the statistical population, or what was sampled, is not aligned with the biological population, which is what we want to know …

Stories From Superfund, Rachel M. Neal

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Superfund sites are the most contaminated places in the nation, but they do not exist in isolation. Stories from Superfund examines Superfund sites in three different communities, sharing the stories of people with varying relationships to these sites.

An audio story explores how the largest Superfund complex in the U.S., the Clark Fork River, serves as a living laboratory. Researchers and agency staff explain what we can learn from the nation’s most contaminated places.

A graphic, written piece uses data to understand environmental justice in a community in Southeast Georgia. Environmental inequities are visualized through graphs and maps showing demographic …

Environmental Factors And Breast Cancer Mortality, Joel Collazo Rodriguez

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Breast cancer is a public health problem in the United States that impacts diverse ethnic female groups in different ways regarding incidence and mortality. Much is known about the factors increasing the risk of developing breast cancer, but little is known about those that increase the chances of dying from it, other than access to health care, screening, and appropriate treatment. This study aimed to understand the association between exposure to Environmental Protection Agency-regulated air pollutants and breast cancer mortality, including how the interaction between these air contaminants impacts the outcome of interest, considering median income, education level, and percentage …

Confocal Analysis Of Sindbis Virus In Aedes Aegypti Unveils Novel Infection Site At Pyloric Armature, Katie Gillian Peters

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Arthropod-borne viruses (arboviruses), such as Sindbis virus (SINV), generate foci of infection within the midgut of viremic blood-fed mosquitoes. Arboviruses can disseminate out of the midgut into the surrounding musculature and hemolymph, eventually making it to the salivary glands where virus can be transmitted by saliva during a subsequent blood-feed. In this study, the virus SINV containing the reporter gene GFP, combined with immunohistochemistry, was imaged using confocal microscopy and used to evaluate the infection within the vector mosquito Aedes aegypti. The spatial distribution of SINV infection revealed two common characteristics of foci generated in the midgut. (1) There …

Health Impacts From Pm2.5 Exposure Using Environmental Epidemiology And Health Risk Assessment: A Review, Thanakon Sukuman, Kayo Ueda, Sarunya Sujaritpong, Hirunwut Praekunatham, Kornwipa Punnasiri, Tuangsit Wimuktayon, Trakarn Prapaspongsa

Applied Environmental Research

Exposure to PM2.5 has been known to cause a variety of serious health consequences. Quantifying and investigating the health effects of PM2.5 pollution are imperative to understand and collect scientific evidence for supporting policies and associated actions. In this paper, we reviewed published environ-mental epidemiological studies and health risk assessments evaluating the health impacts of PM2.5 exposure in the PubMed database to identify the attributes of each method and aggregate the health impact results to perform analyses and summaries. Forty-two studies were identified after applying our search strategy, inclusion, and exclusion criteria. The epidemiological studies found an increased risk of …

Abundance And Distribution Of Fish Larvae In The Central Coast Of The Algerian Sea, Etsouri Mohamed, Khames Ghollame Ellah Yacine, Seridji Rabea

Journal of Marine Science and Technology–Taiwan

This study was conducted on a seasonal basis in five (5) stations along the central Algerian coast between April 2013 and April 2014 aboard professional fishing boats. Horizontal plankton tows with a WP2-type net were used to collect ichthyoplankton samples. At each station, temperature, salinity, and chlorophyll-a levels were measured. We identified the larvae of 18 species from 11 different families by sorting ichthyoplankton (Clupeidae, Engraulidae, Gobidae, Gonostomatidae, Mugilidae, Myctophidae, Scombridae, Sparidae, Carangidae, Labridae, Blennidae). Redundancy analysis (RDA) was used to determine the relationship between the abundance of harvested larvae and environmental variables. The results show a clear dominance of …

Temporal Trends In Tularemia Incidence In The United States From 2010 To 2020. Are Age And Sex Associated With These Changing Trends?, Carla V. Brooks

All ETDs from UAB

Background: Tularemia or Rabbit Fever was discovered in 1911 in a plague-like outbreak among rodents in Tulare County, California. Tularemia in the US has expanded from rural to more metropolitan areas, which may be potentially correlated with the escalating exposure of humans to animal vectors. There has not been a recent study evaluating trends in Tularemia, especially one that has evaluated if the trends in Tularemia over time differ by demographic characteristics. Methods: This is an ecological study to evaluate the temporal trends and if trends Tularemia incidence over time differs by age and sex in the United States from …

Emerging Patterns In Population Structure And Trap Efficacy After Three Years Of A Survey Of Western Painted Turtles (Chrysemys Picta Bellii, Gray, 1830) In Marshall County, South Dakota, Heather L. Waye, Amy C. Dolan, Peter C. Dolan

Biology Publications

Turtles are long-lived and globally declining, but relatively little is known about the natural history of many turtle species. Even amongst relatively well-studied species, there is a paucity of information for some habitats and long-term population trends are lacking. Here we report the results from the first three years of an intended long-term population survey of Western Painted Turtles (Chrysemys picta bellii) in the prairie highlands of the Coteau des Prairies, South Dakota. Turtles were sampled using basking traps, hoop traps, and dip nets. Catch per unit effort varied between years, but not significantly so, and hoop traps …

Recurring Bleaching Events Disrupt The Spatial Properties Of Coral Reef Benthic Communities Across Scales, Helen V. Ford, Jamison M. Gove, John R. Healey, Andrew J. Davies, Nicholas A.J. Graham, Gareth J. Williams

Graduate School of Oceanography Faculty Publications

Marine heatwaves are causing recurring coral bleaching events on tropical reefs that are driving ecosystem change. Yet, little is known about how bleaching and subsequent coral mortality impacts the spatial properties of tropical seascapes, such as patterns of organism spatial clustering and heterogeneity across scales. Changes in these spatial properties can offer insight into ecosystem recovery potential following disturbance. Here we repeatedly quantified coral reef benthic spatial properties around the circumference of an uninhabited tropical island in the central Pacific over a 9-year period that included a minor and subsequent severe marine heatwave. Benthic communities showed increased biotic homogenisation following …

Variation In Carapace Damage Within And Among Loggerhead Musk Turtle (Sternotherus Minor) Populations In Florida Spring-Fed Ecosystems, Joseph J. Pignatelli Iii, Katrina Campbell, Brian P. Butterfield, Gerald R. Johnston, Joseph C. Mitchell, Grover J. Brown, J. Brian Hauge, Andrew D. Walde, Eric C. Munscher

Research, Publications & Creative Work

Damage to a turtle’s shell can provide evidence of past events such as vehicle collisions, disease, predator encounters, or even a behavioural interaction between members of the same species. Documenting shell damage as part of long-term mark and recapture studies enables researchers to determine population trends, intraspecific interactions and identify potential issues within turtle populations. This paper analyses shell damage in populations of the Loggerhead Musk Turtle (Sternotherus minor) (Agassiz, 1857). We examined carapace shell damage frequency and severity in 2701 individual S. minor (1468 males and 1233 females) captured in spring-fed habitats in one state preserve and five state …

ความชุกและพฤติกรรมการใช้สารเสพติดของทหารเกณฑ์ สังกัดค่ายทหาร จังหวัดราชบุรี, จิราวรรณ นิ่มแพร

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

การวิจัยครั้งนี้เป็นการวิจัยเชิงพรรณนา โดยมีวัตถุประสงค์เพื่อศึกษาความชุก พฤติกรรม ทัศนคติ รวมถึงปัจจัยที่เกี่ยวข้องกับการใช้สารเสพติดของทหารเกณฑ์ ได้ทำการศึกษาในทหารเกณฑ์ สังกัดค่ายทหาร จังหวัดราชบุรี ช่วงเดือนกรกฎาคม - กันยายน ปี 2566 จำนวน 400 คน เครื่องมือที่ใช้ในการวิจัยประกอบด้วย แบบสอบถามข้อมูลทั่วไป แบบสอบถามทัศนคติต่อการใช้สารเสพติด แบบคัดกรองประสบการณ์ในการใช้ยาสูบ สุรา และสารเสพติดตัวอื่นๆ แบบสอบถามความผิดปกติของการใช้สารเสพติด และการตรวจปัสสาวะ สถิติที่ใช้ในการวิเคราะห์ คือ สถิติเชิงพรรณนา และสถิติเชิงอนุมาน ผลการศึกษาพบความชุกการใช้สารอย่างน้อยหนึ่งชนิดตลอดช่วงชีวิตและช่วง 3 เดือนที่ผ่านมา คิดเป็นร้อยละ 86.7 และ 71.5 ตามลำดับ สารที่มีการใช้มากที่สุด 5 อันดับแรก คือ เครื่องดื่มแอลกอฮอล์ ผลิตภัณฑ์ยาสูบ ใบกระท่อม กัญชา และสารผสมน้ำต้มใบกระท่อม พบผู้ที่ใช้ผลิตภัณฑ์ยาสูบ (82.68%) กัญชา (50.00%) มีความเสี่ยงระดับปานกลาง ในกลุ่มผู้ใช้สารแต่ละชนิด พบความผิดปกติจากการใช้สาร 76.76%, 37.38%, 37.37%, 34.14%, 27.27, 26.67% ในกลุ่มผู้ใช้ผลิตภัณฑ์ยาสูบ, เครื่องดื่มแอลกอฮอล์, กัญชา, ใบกระท่อม สารผสมน้ำต้มใบกระท่อมและกลุ่มแอมเฟตามีน ตามลำดับ กลุ่มตัวอย่างส่วนใหญ่มีทัศนคติเชิงลบต่อการใช้สารเสพติด การมีระดับการศึกษาที่ต่ำและมีรายได้เพียงพอเป็นปัจจัยที่มีความสัมพันธ์และเป็นปัจจัยทำนายการใช้สารเสพติดของทหารเกณฑ์ สังกัดค่ายทหาร จังหวัดราชบุรี (P

Identifying Habitat Suitability And Connectivity For Roosevelt Elk (Cervus Canadensis Roosevelti) On The North Coast Of California, Ashley Ann Harper

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

As human development continues to expand, wildlife managers are faced with problems arising from human-wildlife conflict. To address conflict, it is vital to identify how animals view the landscape and move across areas of differing land use. On the North Coast of California, Roosevelt elk (Cervus canadensis roosevelti) are widely considered to be a valuable resource but are viewed by some as a nuisance due to economic losses caused by property damage. The aim of this study was to identify suitable habitat and movement corridors for Roosevelt elk across Humboldt and Del Norte counties in northern California. Suitable …

Examining The Effects Of Seed Mix Diversity And Composition, Biochar Application, Seeding Rate, Species Identity, And Topography On Palouse Prairie Restoration, Thurman Johnson

EWU Masters Thesis Collection

With over 99.9% of the Palouse prairie lost to land conversion, restoring native plant communities is crucial for ecological function, however, research on Palouse prairie restoration methods is sparse. Seed-based restoration uses a mix of seeded species to enhance competition against weeds, diversify vegetation, and adapt to environmental conditions. However, many factors can be varied, such as seed mix diversity and composition, the proportion of forbs to grasses, and seeding rate, and the most effective levels of each are not clear. Further, soil amendments, such as biochar, may benefit properties of tilled soils, but have not explored in Palouse Prairie …

Carnivore And Ungulate Occurrence In A Fire-Prone Region, Sara J. Moriarty-Graves

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Increasing fire size and severity in the western United States causes changes to ecosystems, species’ habitat use, and interspecific interactions. Wide-ranging carnivore and ungulate mammalian species and their interactions may be influenced by an increase in fire activity in northern California. Depending on the fire characteristics, ungulates may benefit from burned habitat due to an increase in forage availability, while carnivore species may be differentially impacted, but ultimately driven by bottom-up processes from a shift in prey availability. I used a three-step approach to estimate the single-species occupancy of four large mammal species: mountain lion (Puma concolor), coyote …

Effects Of Agricultural Chemicals On Native Plants Of The Northern Great Plains, Gabrielle Bolwerk

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Agricultural chemicals are ubiquitous on the Northern Great Plains landscape and have negative impacts on non-target plant communities, even at small doses. Northern Great Plains grassland plant communities may experience herbicide drift from agricultural fields or be subject to livestock pharmaceuticals in grazing lands. My research objective was to evaluate if and how native plants are affected by agricultural chemical presence at different concentrations. In Chapter 2, I studied the effect of different concentrations of three common agricultural herbicides (2,4-D, atrazine, and trifluralin) on the germination, emergence, and growth of native plant species of the Northern Great Plains. I performed …

Connecting Antibiotic Resistance To The Environment (Care): Introducing A Novel Framework Integrating Chemical Cross-Resistance And Place-Based Engagement To The Blue Marsh Watershed In Reading, Pennsylvania, Jill Felker

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Antibiotic resistance is a serious health threat around the world. Millions of individuals are infected with antibiotic-resistant bacteria yearly, and thousands die from previously curable illnesses. Although antibiotic resistance occurs naturally, misuse of antibiotics accelerates the loss of their effectiveness. Public health campaigns focusing on antibiotic awareness have not effectively communicated and educated the public on this health crisis. New efforts to combat antibiotic resistance are urgently needed. This dissertation focuses on the ecological and public health components of antibiotic resistance research that must be addressed to decelerate antibiotic resistance. A new interdisciplinary theoretical framework was developed to Connect Antibiotic …

Muscovy Duck (Cairina Moschata), M. J. Robinson, S. K. Robinson, Ann Hodgson, Florida Ornithological Society

Family 01: Anatidae

Of the roughly 100 bird species introduced to Florida over the years, 14 are considered established species, including the Muscovy Duck. The native range of this large, bulky duck species includes Central and South America, Mexico, and the southernmost regions of Texas.

Using Extended Two-Step Floating Catchment Area To Map Children’S Level Of Access To Physical Books In West Virginia, Heather A. Maxey

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

The state of West Virginia lacked a comprehensive, in-depth analysis of the availability of physical books across the state. Access to reading material is vital to a child’s educational development as well as lifelong learning beyond childhood. To guide policy decisions and planning for outreach which addresses reading levels and beyond, I mapped levels of access stemming from socioeconomic barriers, spatial barriers, and an integrated index of both types of barriers. To map spatial access, I utilized a modified Extended Two-Step Floating Catchment Area model, deriving techniques from Hong et al’s 2023 article addressing access for health care in WV. …

Driving After Marijuana Use Among Us College Students During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Yuni Tang

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Introduction: Adolescents and college-aged adults account for a large proportion of the United States population and are susceptible to drugs, including marijuana. Since the late 1960s in the United States, numerous states have legalized marijuana for medical and recreational purposes. These recent policy changes may alter people’s attitudes and behaviors about marijuana use, particularly young adults. The expansion of state-level marijuana legalization may also increase accessibility in younger populations and increase reckless driving behavior associated with marijuana use, including driving after marijuana use. During the COVID-19 pandemic, adolescents and young adults experienced heightened stress and anxiety, which have significantly contributed …