Life Sciences Commons^™

Persistence And Conspecific Observations Improve Problem-Solving Abilities Of Coyotes, Julie K. Young, Laura Touzot, Stacey P. Brummer

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Social learning has important ecological and evolutionary consequences but the role of certain factors, such as social rank, neophobia (i.e., avoidance of novel stimuli), persistence, and task-reward association, remain less understood. We examined the role of these factors in social learning by captive coyotes (Canis latrans) via three studies. Study 1 involved individual animals and eliminated object neophobia by familiarizing the subjects to the testing apparatus prior to testing. Studies 2 and 3 used mated pairs to assess social rank, and included object neophobia, but differed in that study 3 decoupled the food reward from the testing apparatus (i.e., altered …

Analysis Of Iophenoxic Acid Analogues In Small Indian Mongoose (Herpestes Auropunctatus) Sera For Use As An Oral Rabies Vaccination Biological Marker, Are R. Berentsen, Robert T. Sugihara, Cynthia G. Payne, Israel Leinbach, Steven F. Volker, Ad Vos, Steffen Ortmann, Amy T. Gilbert

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The small Indian mongoose (Herpestes auropunctatus) is a reservoir of rabies virus (RABV) in Puerto Rico and comprises over 70% of animal rabies cases reported annually. The control of RABV circulation in wildlife reservoirs is typically accomplished by a strategy of oral rabies vaccination (ORV). Currently no wildlife ORV program exists in Puerto Rico. Research into oral rabies vaccines and various bait types for mongooses has been conducted with promising results. Monitoring the success of ORV relies on estimating bait uptake by target species, which typically involves evaluating a change in RABV neutralizing antibodies (RVNA) post vaccination. This …

No Detection Of Brodifacoum Residues In The Marine And Terrestrial Food Web Three Years After Rat Eradication At Palmyra Atoll, Central Pacific, A. Wegmann, G. Howald, S. Kropidlowski, N. Holmes, A.B. Shiels

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Invasive alien species represent one of the greatest threats to native plants and animals on islands. Rats (Rattus spp.) have invaded most of the world’s oceanic islands, causing lasting or irreversible damage to ecosystems and biodiversity. To counter this threat, techniques to eradicate invasive rats from islands have been developed and applied across the globe. Eradication of alien rats from large or complex island ecosystems has only been successful with the use of bait containing a rodenticide. While effective at eradicating rats from islands, rodenticide can persist in the ecosystem longer than the time required to eradicate the target rat …

Potential Role Of Wildlife In The Usa In The Event Of A Foot-And-Mouth Disease Virus Incursion, Vienna R. Brown, Sarah N. Bevins

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Foot-and-mouth disease (FMD) is caused by foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) which affects domestic and wild cloven-hoofed species. The FMD-free status of the USA and the tremendous economic impact of a virus incursion motivated the development of this evaluation of the potential role of wildlife in the event of a virus introduction. Additionally, this manuscript contains a summary of US vulnerabilities for viral incursion and persistence which focuses specifically on the possible role of wildlife. The legal movement of susceptible live animals, animal products, by-products and animal feed containing animal products pose a risk of virus introduction and spread. Additionally, the …

A Bioeconomic Model For The Optimization Of Local Canine Rabies Control, Aaron Anderson, Johann Kotze, Stephanie A. Shwiff, Brody Hatch, Chris Slootmaker, Anne Conan, Darryn Knobel, Louis H. Nel

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

We present a new modeling tool that can be used to maximize the impact of canine rabies management resources that are available at the local level. The model is accessible through a web-based interface that allows for flexibility in the management strategies that can be investigated. Rabies vaccination, sterilization, chemo-contraception, and euthanasia can be specified and limited to specific demographic groups. Additionally, we allowed for considerable complexity in the specification of management costs. In many areas, the costs of contacting additional dogs increases as management effort increases, and this can have important strategic implications. We illustrated the application of the …

Black Bear Use Of Forest Roads In Western Washington, Gary W. Witmer

USDA Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Radiolocations (108) of 20 black bears were used to assess use or avoidance of 3 forest road types in western Washington. Distances of bears to each type of road were compared to distances of 108 random points using t-tests. Females and males avoided 2-lane roads, while only males avoided 1-lane roads, the most common road type in the area. Females, but not males, were located closer to overgrown, spur roads than expected. This road type has substantial cover of grasses, forbs, and berry-producing shrubs along with protective tree cover. This situation may provide easy travel for females along with security …

Ecophysiological Determinants Of Sexual Size Dimorphism: Integrating Growth Trajectories, Environmental Conditions, And Metabolic Rates, Marie-Claire Chelini, John P. Delong, Eileen A. Hebets

Eileen Hebets Publications

Sexual size dimorphism (SSD) often results in dramatic differences in body size between females and males. Despite its ecological importance, little is known about the relationship between developmental, physiological, and energetic mechanisms underlying SSD. We take an integrative approach to understand the relationship between developmental trajectories, metabolism, and environmental conditions resulting in extreme female-biased SSD in the crab spider Mecaphesa celer (Thomisidae). We tested for sexual differences in growth trajectories, as well as in the energetics of growth, hypothesizing that female M. celer have lower metabolic rates than males or higher energy assimilation. We also hypothesized that the environment in …

Attainment And Maintenance Of Pubertal Cyclicity May Predict High A4 Cows With Reduced Fertility, Sarah Nafziger

Department of Animal Science: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Puberty attainment was investigated in heifers. Blood samples were collected from weaning until breeding during 6 years from heifers born in 2012-2017. Plasma progesterone concentrations ≥ 1 ng/ml were used to indicate cyclicity, and heifers were categorized into one of four puberty groups using SAS: 1) Early heifers reached puberty before March 12 and cycled continuously during the sampling period, 2) Typical heifers reached puberty on or after March 12 and cycled continuously, 3) Start-Stop heifers had at least one occurrence of progesterone ≥ 1 ng/ml but discontinued cycling during the sampling period, and 4) Non-Cycling heifers had no occurrence …

Distribution Extension Of Aspiculuris Americana Parasite Of Peromyscus Difficilis In Hidalgo, Mexico, Griselda Pulido-Flores, Scott Monks, Jorge Falcón-Ordaz

Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology: Faculty and Staff Publications

English: As a part of an ongoing project to inventory the helminth parasites of rodents in Mexico, 30 individuals of Aspiculuris americana were collected inhabiting the intestine from three specimens of the rock mouse Peromyscus difficilis, collected from Cerro Xihuingo, Municipality of Tepeapulco, Hidalgo State, Mexico. This species of nematode parasite different species of the genus Peromyscus (P. gossypinus, P. leucopus, P. maniculatus, and P. floridanus) distributed from Yukon Territory in Canada to Florida in the United States of America. This is the first report of Aspiculuris americana in a Mexican endemic rodent, widening …

Maternal Inflammation At 0.7 Gestation In Ewes Leads To Intrauterine Growth Restriction And Impaired Glucose Metabolism In Offspring At 30 D Of Age, Robert J. Posont, Caitlin N. Cadaret, Kristin A. Beede, Joslyn K. Beard, Rebecca M. Swanson, Rachel L. Gibbs, Jessica L. Petersen, Dustin T. Yates

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

Fetal programming associated with intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) leads to lifelong deficits in growth and metabolic function (Hales and Barker, 2013). IUGR arises when fetuses respond to poor in utero conditions by developing adaptations that repartition nutrients to critical tissues and away from skeletal muscle (Yates et al., 2012, 2018). This fetal programming is beneficial in utero but leads to persistent reductions in muscle mass and glucose homeostasis in offspring (DeFronzo et al., 1981). Recent studies by our laboratory in sheep and rats demonstrate that maternal inflammation during gestation induces fetal inflammatory adaptations that impair growth and disrupt muscle glucose …

Body Composition Estimated By Bioelectrical Impedance Analyses Is Diminished By Prenatal Stress In Neonatal Lambs And By Heat Stress In Feedlot Wethers, Rachel L. Gibbs, Caitlin N. Cadaret, Rebecca M. Swanson, Kristin A. Beede, Robert J. Posont, Ty B. Schmidt, Jessica Lynn Petersen, Dustin T. Yates

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

Body composition correlates to carcass value in livestock, which makes the ability to accurately estimate body composition in the live animal beneficial (Berg and Marchello, 1994). Bioelectrical impedance analysis (BIA) is a clinical tool used to assess body composition in humans (Lukaski et al., 1985), but its use in livestock has been minimal. Lean and fat content contribute to profitability for livestock producers, and poor body composition can be caused by stress that occurs either during in utero development (De Blasio et al., 2007) or during postnatal growth (Boyd et al., 2015). Maternal hyperthermia-induced placental insufficiency (Brown et al., 2015) …

Ractopamine Hcl Improved Cardiac Hypertrophy But Not Poor Growth, Metabolic Inefficiency, Or Greater White Blood Cells Associated With Heat Stress In Concentrate-Fed Lambs, Rebecca M. Swanson, Kristin A. Beede, Micayla D. Freeman, Morgan L. Eggleston, Ty B. Schmidt, Jessica L. Petersen, Dustin T. Yates

Department of Animal Science: Faculty Publications

Heat stress decreases livestock performance and well-being (Hahn, 1999; Nienaber and Hahn, 2007), causes metabolic dysfunction that decreases growth efficiency (O’Brien et al., 2010), and alters cardiovascular function (Crandall et al., 2008). Each year, heat stress costs the livestock industry up to $2.5 billion (St-Pierre et al., 2003). Ractopamine HCl acts as a nutrient repartitioning agent (Beermann, 2002); classified as a β adrenergic agonist (βAA), it shares pharmacological properties with adrenaline (Beermann, 2002). βAA increase muscle mass and decreases fat deposition through unknown mechanisms (Beermann, 2002). In feedlot cattle, they increase growth efficiency and improve carcass yield and merit (Scramlin …

Nebraska Grazing Conference Proceedings, 2019, Center For Grassland Studies, University Of Nebraska-Lincoln

Nebraska Grazing Conference Proceedings

Rangeland Health Session

Managing Sand Deposits after the Flood by Daren Redfearn

Rangeland Health: What Is It and Why Do I Care?” by Patrick Shaver

Managing a Sandhills Ranch with an Eye to Soil Health by Dana Larsen

Grazinglands Management Session

Soil Health: Expectations and Evidence by Virginia Jin

Mob Grazing on Nebraska Sandhills Meadow by Walt Schacht

Effect of Length of Grazing Period on Upland Sandhills Range by Jerry Volesky

Carbon Input and Loss in Semi-arid Sandy Rangeland by Martha Mamo

Graze 365 by Jacob Miller

Soil Health and Grazing Strategies: Opportunities for Increasing Soil Water by Andrea Basche …

Melanism As A Potential Thermal Benefit In Eastern Fox Squirrels (Sciurus Niger), Amanda K. Ciurej, Ashley Oblander, Andrew W. Swift, James A. Wilson

United States Fish and Wildlife: Staff Publications

Melanistic fox squirrels (Sciurus niger) have expanded westward and increased in frequency in the Omaha, Nebraska, and Council Bluffs, Iowa, metropolitan areas. The selective advantage of melanism is currently unknown, but thermal advantages have been hypothesized, especially in winter. No difference in metabolic response curves were measured between melanistic (black) and rufus (orange) fox squirrels. When exposed to sunny skies, both melanistic and rufus squirrels had higher surface (skin and fur) temperature as ambient temperatures increased. Melanistic squirrel surface temperatures did not differ when squirrels were exposed to sunny or cloudy skies. However, rufus individuals showed significantly lower …

Novel Information On The Morphology, Phylogeny And Distribution Of Camallanid Mematodes From Marine And Freshwater Hosts In South Africa, Including The Description Of Camallanus Sodwanaensis N. Sp., Roman Svitin, Marliese Truter, Olena Kudlai, Nico J. Smit, Louis Du Preez

Harold W. Manter Laboratory: Library Materials

Four species of previously known nematodes from the family Camallanidae were found from different hosts in South Africa: Batrachocamallanus xenopodis from the frog Xenopus muelleri, Paracamallanus cyathopharynx, and Procamallanus pseudolaeviconchus from the catfish Clarias gariepinus and Spirocamallanus daleneae from the catfish Synodontis zambezensis. In the material collected from various marine fishes, several specimens of nematodes from the genus Camallanus clearly differed from all previously known species. Based on morphological differences these specimens are assigned to a new species, C. sodwanaensis. Molecular data of 18S and 28S rDNA and COI sequences are provided for the collected species …

Scaphanocephalus-Associated Dermatitis As The Basis For Black Spot Disease In Acanthuridae Of St. Kitts, West Indies, Michelle M. Dennis, Adrien Izquierdo, Anne Conan, Kelsey Johnson, Solenne Giardi, Paul Frye, Mark A. Freeman

Harold W. Manter Laboratory: Library Materials

Acanthurus spp. of St. Kitts and other Caribbean islands, including ocean surgeonfish A. bahianus, doctorfish A. chirurgus, and blue tang A. coeruleus, frequently show multifocal cutaneous pigmentation. Initial reports from the Leeward Antilles raised suspicion of a parasitic etiology. The aim of this study was to quantify the prevalence of the disease in St. Kitts’ Acanthuridae and describe its pathology and etiology. Visual surveys demonstrated consistently high adjusted mean prevalence at 3 shallow reefs in St. Kitts in 2017 (38.9%, 95% CI: 33.8−43.9) and 2018 (51.5%; 95% CI: 46.2−56.9). There were no differences in …

Gravid Tetragnathid Spiders Show An Increased Functional Response, Mary E. Boswell, John P. Delong

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

Spiders in the genus Tetragnatha feed on emerging aquatic insects, including mosquitoes and midges, but there is little known about the foraging behavior of these spiders. We hypothesized that female spiders actively developing egg sacs would increase food consumption to provide more energy to produce and provision their eggs. We tested this hypothesis by measuring foraging rates of Tetragnatha spiders kept in jars and provisioned with different levels of midges. We then tested for a difference in the functional response of spiders that did or did not lay egg sacs in their jars. Egg-laying and non-egg-laying spiders showed significantly different …