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Roles And Interaction Of Blow Flies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) And Introduced Fire Ants (Hymenoptera: Formicidae: Solenopsis Invicta And S. Invicta X Richteri) In Carrion Decomposition In The Southeastern United States, Grant De Jong

Theses and Dissertations

Invasive fire ants (Solenopsis invicta and its hybrid with S. richteri) have been reported from carrion in the southeastern United States and are considered a part of the succession community. Alteration of ecological processes by fire ants could affect forensic interpretation of entomological data; therefore, I conducted studies to investigate the relative roles and interactions of fire ants and blow flies in carrion decomposition. The blow fly species composition in Mississippi has not been studied since 16 species were reported in 1983. Specimens from the Mississippi Entomological Museum were used to update the checklist of the blow flies of Mississippi …

Race And Ethnic Variation In College Students’ Allostatic Regulation Of Racism-Related Stress, Jacob E. Cheadle, Bridget J. Goosby, Joseph C. Jochman, Cara Tomaso, Chelsea B. Kozikowski Yancey, Timothy D. Nelson

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Racism-related stress is thought to contribute to widespread race/ ethnic health inequities via negative emotion and allostatic stress process up-regulation. Although prior studies document racerelated stress and health correlations, due to methodological and technical limitations, they have been unable to directly test the stress-reactivity hypothesis in situ. Guided by theories of constructed emotion and allostasis, we developed a protocol using wearable sensors and daily surveys that allowed us to operationalize and time-couple self-reported racism-related experiences, negative emotions, and an independent biosignal of emotional arousal. We used data from 100 diverse young adults at a predominantly White college campus to assess …

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 …

Analisis Spasial Penyakit Tuberkulosis Paru Di Kalimantan Tengah Tahun 2017, Grahyta Dhamayanti, Ari Rahma Yanti, Hanifah Nurdani, Rijkianias Suningsih

Jurnal Biostatistik, Kependudukan, dan Informatika Kesehatan

Pada Tahun 2017 ditemukan jumlah kasus baru TB Paru di Kalimantan Tenggah sebanyak 2033 kasus, lebih banyak bila dibandingkan dengan jumlah penemuan kasus pada tahun 2016 sebanyak 1580 kasus. Tujuan penelitian ini yaitu diketahuinya analisis spasial TB Paru di Kalimantan Tengah. Penelitian ini menggunakan desain studi ekologi dan pendekatan deskriptif kuantitatif dengan model analisis spasial. Data kasus TB Paru di Provinsi Kalimantan Tengah diperoleh dari BPS Kalimantan Tengah. Jumlah kasus TB Paru tertinggi ada di Kota Palangka Raya, diikuti Kotawaringin Timur dan Kotawaringin Barat. Kepadatan penduduk, rumah tangga pra sejahtera, rumah sehat ber PHBS, sanitasi rumah tangga dan fasilitas pelayanan …

Supporting School Readiness Through Librarian-Child Interactions In Public Library Storytimes: An Analysis Of Assessment Scores And Influential Factors, Maria Cahill, Hayley Hoffman, Erin E. Ingram, Soohyung Joo

Information Science Faculty Publications

A recent trend in public libraries′ children’s services emphasizes the role of promoting school readiness. In order to gain a deeper understanding of the school readiness efforts present in storytime programs, this study observed and scored 68 public library preschool storytime sessions presented by 35 storytime providers across three states using the CLASS (Classroom Assessment Scoring System) measure. The CLASS evaluates adult-child interactions in learning environments within three domains related to positive outcomes in children’s school readiness: emotional support, classroom organization, and instructional support. Additionally, the study examined whether differences among CLASS scores were influenced by the population density of …

Tourism As Industry And Field Of Study: Using Research And Education To Address Overtourism, Kathleen M. Adams, Peter Sanchez

Anthropology: Faculty Publications and Other Works

Purpose: The purpose of this article is (1) to highlight the dual, Janis-faced, nature of the study of tourism as an industry and as a field of study; (2) to discuss how education is used to promote sustainable tourism and prevent overtourism, both in the academic arena as well as where tourism occurs; and (3) to offer suggestions concerning the value of education as an avenue for harmonizing the Janus-faced character of tourism, in order to foster a tourism industry that can better achieve global sustainability.

Design/methodology/approach: This paper combines literature review with assessment. The authors use existing literature on …

Urban-Rural Disparities In Access To Low-Dose Computed Tomography Lung Cancer Screening In Missouri And Illinois, Karthik W Rohatgi, Christine M Marx, Marquita W Lewis-Thames, Jingxia Liu, Graham A Colditz, Aimee S James

Open Access Publications

INTRODUCTION: Low-dose computed tomography (LDCT) lung cancer screening is recommended for current and former smokers who meet eligibility criteria. Few studies have quantitatively examined disparities in access to LDCT screening. The objective of this study was to examine relationships between 1) rurality, sociodemographic characteristics, and access to LDCT lung cancer screening and 2) screening access and lung cancer mortality.

METHODS: We used census block group and county-level data from Missouri and Illinois. We defined access to screening as presence of an accredited screening center within 30 miles of residence as of May 2019. We used mixed-effects logistic models for screening …

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 …

Scaling Invisible Walls: Reasserting Indigenous Persistence In Mission-Era California, Tsim D. Schneider, Khal Schneider, Lee M. Panich

Faculty Publications

California’s Franciscan missions were grounded in Indigenous homelands that to this day remain largely undertheorized and trivialized by scholarly and popular understandings of missions as inescapable fortresses of confinement. Narratives that position California’s missions as places of Indigenous imprisonment endure but they are at odds with a growing body of archaeological and documentary evidence demonstrating the persistence of Native lives, activities, and decision-making taking place within and beyond the walls of missions. We argue that interpretations of the missions in scholarly and popular conversation must make Indigenous persistence and resilient relationships to meaningful landscapes the cardinal priorities, not secondary attributes, …

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 …

Floristic Changes In The Understory Vegetation Of Mixed Temperate New England Freshwater Island Forests Over A Period Of 33 Years, Marjorie M. Holland, Mark Winkler

Faculty and Student Publications

© 2020 by the authors. Licensee MDPI, Basel, Switzerland. During a 33-year sampling period, we observed species richness and calculated species evenness and Shannon Diversity for understory woody seedlings and herbaceous species on three small islands in Lake Winnipesaukee, New Hampshire, and noted consistency of dominant plant species over time. Seedlings and herbaceous species were recorded and measured in 25 permanent plots that were created on the three islands in 1978. The understory species data were compiled by frequency and dominance of woody seedlings and herbaceous species. Data from 250 individual quadrats show that species richness more than doubled from …

Fire, Native Ecological Knowledge, And The Enduring Anthropogenic Landscapes Of Yosemite Valley, Douglas Deur, Rochelle Bloom

Anthropology Faculty Publications and Presentations

Yosemite Valley is a place with rich and enduring traditions of Indigenous Ecological Knowledge, manifesting in specific management practices that, in turn, leave discernible imprints upon the natural landscape. Historically, the Native American inhabitants of Yosemite Valley have employed a variety of techniques that materially enhance the availability of culturally preferred plant communities. This chapter identifies specific techniques that appear consistently in the oral traditions and written historical accounts of the valley. These methods included anthropogenic burning, pruning and coppicing, clearing underbrush beneath trees, hand eradication (“weeding”) of certain competing species, selective harvesting, smoking, “knocking” of dead wood from the …

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 …

The Use Of Penalized Regression Analysis To Identify County-Level Demographic And Socioeconomic Variables Predictive Of Increased Covid-19 Cumulative Case Rates In The State Of Georgia, Holly L. Richmond, Joana Tome, Haresh Rochani, Isaac Chun-Hai Fung, Gulzar H. Shah, Jessica S. Schwind

Biostatistics, Epidemiology & Environmental Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Systemic inequity concerning the social determinants of health has been known to affect morbidity and mortality for decades. Significant attention has focused on the individual-level demographic and co-morbid factors associated with rates and mortality of COVID-19. However, less attention has been given to the county-level social determinants of health that are the main drivers of health inequities. To identify the degree to which social determinants of health predict COVID-19 cumulative case rates at the county-level in Georgia, we performed a sequential, cross-sectional ecologic analysis using a diverse set of socioeconomic and demographic variables. Lasso regression was used to identify variables …

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 …

Review Of Research On Public Libraries: A Scopus Based Bibliometric Analysis, Danappa Vaggi, S Parameshwar, Goutami P. M

Library Philosophy and Practice (e-journal)

Public libraries are considered as peoples universities and can play a vital role in overall development of community they serve with the help of the resources and services. We have collected to data from the Scopus database for the period of 1971-2019. We have identified the trends in public libraries research, prominent authors who are involved in the research on public libraries issues and Y applied to evaluate the author’s contribution. Core journals and productive countries also determined and taken up the author supplied keyword analysis over decades. This work would be useful to the researchers who are working on …

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 …

A Review Of A Decade Of Lessons From One Of The World’S Largest Mpas: Conservation Gains And Key Challenges, G.C. Hays, H.J. Koldewey, S. Andrzejaczek, M.J. Attrill, S. Barley, D.T.I. Bayley, C.E. Benkwitt, B. Block, R.J. Schallert, A.B. Carlisle, P. Carr, T.K. Chapple, C. Collins, C. Diaz, N. Dunn, R.B. Dunbar, D.S. Eager, J. Engel, C.B. Embling, N. Esteban, F. Ferretti, N.L. Foster, R. Freeman, M. Gollock, N.A.J. Graham, J.L. Harris, C.E.I. Head, P. Hosegood, K.L. Howell

School of Biological and Marine Sciences

Given the recent trend towards establishing very large marine protected areas (MPAs) and the high potential of these to contribute to global conservation targets, we review outcomes of the last decade of marine conservation research in the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT), one of the largest MPAs in the world. The BIOT MPA consists of the atolls of the Chagos Archipelago, interspersed with and surrounded by deep oceanic waters. Islands around the atoll rims serve as nesting grounds for sea birds. Extensive and diverse shallow and mesophotic reef habitats provide essential habitat and feeding grounds for all marine life, and …

Misguided Opposition To Multiplicity Adjustment Remains A Problem, Andrew V. Frane

Journal of Modern Applied Statistical Methods

Fallacious arguments against multiplicity adjustment have been cited with increasing frequency to defend unadjusted tests. These arguments and their enduring impact are discussed in this paper.

Winter Temperature And Forest Cover Have Shaped Red Deer Distribution In Europe And The Ural Mountains Since The Late Pleistocene, Magdalena Niedziałkowska, Karolina Doan, Marcin Górny, Maciej Sykut, Krzysztof Stefaniak, Natalia Piotrowska, Bogumiła Jędrzejewska, Bogdan Ridush, Sławomira Pawełczyk, Paweł Mackiewicz, Ulrich Schmölcke, Pavel Kosintsev, Daniel Makowiecki, Maxim Charniauski, Dariusz Krasnodębski, Eve Rannamäe, Urmas Saarma, Marine Arakelyan, Ninna Manaseryan, Vadim V. Titov, Pavel Hulva, Adrian Bălășescu, Ralph Fyfe, Jessie Woodbridge, Katerina Trantalidou, V Dimitrijevic, Oleksandr Kovalchuk, Jarosław Wilczyński, Theodor Obadă, Grzegorz Lipecki, Alesia Arabey, Ana Stanković

School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences

No abstract provided.

White- And Black-Box Computing And Measurements Under Limited Resources: Cloud, High Performance, And Quantum Computing, And Two Case Studies -- Robotic Boat And Hierarchical Covid Testing, Vladik Kreinovich, Martine Ceberio, Olga Kosheleva

Departmental Technical Reports (CS)

In many practical problems, it is important to take into account that our computational and measuring resources are limited. In this paper, we overview main resource limitations for different types of computers, and we provide two case studies explaining how to best take this resource limitation into account.

The Central Role Of Taxonomy In The Study Of Neotropical Biodiversity1, Laura P. Lagomarsino, Laura A. Frost

Faculty Publications

© 2020 Missouri Botanical Garden. All rights reserved. The Neotropics are the most species-rich area of the planet. Understanding the origin and maintenance of this diversity is an important goal of ecology and evolutionary biology. Success in this endeavor relies heavily on the past work of taxonomists who have collected specimens and produced the floras and monographs that constitute the foundation for the study of plant diversity. To illustrate this, we visualize collecting efforts through time and identify the importance of past taxonomic and collection efforts in generating the bulk of specimen data that broad-scale analyses rely on today. To …

Effect Of Female Sex Work-Targeted Community-Based Interventions Along The Hiv Treatment Cascade In Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review Protocol, Lydia Atuhaire, Olatunji Adetokunboh, Constance Shumba, Peter S. Nyasulu

School of Nursing & Midwifery, East Africa

Introduction: Female sex workers (FSWs) are a known high-risk group that are at increased risk of HIV transmission due to exposure to multiple sexual partners and inability to negotiate safe sex attributed to challenging economic circumstances. Previous systematic reviews have examined the effectiveness of HIV interventions prioritising FSWs and have shown that targeted interventions improve access to HIV prevention and treatment services. Interventions that increase FSWs’ uptake of services are well documented; however, evidence on specific interventions aimed at improving FSWs’ continuity in HIV care along the treatment cascade is lacking. This systematic review aims to document the performance of …