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Articles 1 - 13 of 13
Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Juvenile Ornamentation: Its Evolution, Genetic Basis, And Variation Across Habitats, Angela Tringali
Juvenile Ornamentation: Its Evolution, Genetic Basis, And Variation Across Habitats, Angela Tringali
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Ornamental traits are considered honest advertisements of fitness, and their evolution is usually explained in terms of sexual selection. This explanation remains unsatisfactory in some instances, for example, juvenile birds whose plumage is molted prior to adulthood and breeding. I first evaluate whether juvenile plumage reflectance signals dominance status in the Federally Threatened Florida scrub-jay (Aphelocoma coerulescens) using a combination of observational and experimental methods. Then I estimate the heritability, non-genetic maternal and environmental effects, and strength of selection on juvenile plumage reflectance using archived feather samples and a pedigree constructed from historical nest records. Finally, I compare plumage reflectance …
Wetland Diversity In A Disturbance-Maintained Landscape: Effects Of Fire And A Fire Surrogate On Aquatic Amphibian Survival And Species Depauperateness., Joyce Klaus
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Disturbance is one of the central concepts explaining how diversity arises and is perpetuated in ecological time. A good model system for testing hypotheses related to disturbance is the longleaf pine ecosystem in the southeastern U.S. because in this ecosystem frequent, low-severity fires acts as a disturbance that maintains a unique vegetation structure and high species richness. Vegetation structure influences animal distributions; in fire-dependent ecosystems many animals rely on open-structured, fire-maintained vegetation but shrubs and trees encroach into fire-dependent ecosystems where fire has been excluded. Prescribed burning and mechanical removal are commonly used as restoration tools to control encroachment. To …
Testing For Indirect Benefits Of Polyandry In The Florida Green Turtle, Christopher Long
Testing For Indirect Benefits Of Polyandry In The Florida Green Turtle, Christopher Long
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Behavioral studies in the green turtle (Chelonia mydas) have indicated that promiscuous mating is commonplace. Though it has been shown that there is much variation in the rate of polyandry (females mating with multiple males), the drivers behind polyandry in this species are unknown. It has been speculated, but never demonstrated, that indirect benefits (fitness benefits resulting from offspring genetic diversity) play a role. However, previous tests of this hypothesis have limited scope of inference due to lack of environmental control. In this thesis, I attempted to study the indirect benefits of polyandry in Archie Carr National Wildlife Refuge (ACNWR) …
Florida Local Government Conservation Planning: Variability, Drivers, And Policy Implications, Pamela Pannozzo
Florida Local Government Conservation Planning: Variability, Drivers, And Policy Implications, Pamela Pannozzo
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This study examined the quality of Florida county government conservation planning. To assess conservation planning quality, a theoretical model of conservation planning as prescribed by the conservation science literature was first developed. A plan evaluation coding protocol was applied to local comprehensive plan Conservation Elements to determine the extent to which county-level conservation planning met the theoretical model. A high degree of variability in conservation planning quality was found. Highest quality conservation planning occurred in the Gulf coast counties of southwest Florida. Lowest conservation planning quality occurred in the Florida Panhandle counties. The quality of conservation planning of coastal counties …
Relating Climate Change To The Nesting Phenology And Nest Environment Of Marine Turtles, Monette Schwoerer
Relating Climate Change To The Nesting Phenology And Nest Environment Of Marine Turtles, Monette Schwoerer
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Ectotherms (including marine turtles) being especially sensitive to climate, are at risk to the accelerated rate of human-driven climate change. This study addresses two concerns associated with marine turtles and climate change – the relationship between the timing of marine turtle nesting and sea surface temperature; and the concern over the feminization of marine turtle populations due to rising sand temperatures. Previous studies of loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta) and green sea turtles (Chelonia mydas) have documented the relationship between sea surface temperatures and nesting phenology. Earlier nesting behaviors in both species have been associated with warmer sea surface temperatures. …
Assessing The Effectiveness Of Living Shoreline Restoration And Quantifying Wave Attenuation In Mosquito Lagoon, Florida, Jennifer Manis
Assessing The Effectiveness Of Living Shoreline Restoration And Quantifying Wave Attenuation In Mosquito Lagoon, Florida, Jennifer Manis
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Coastal counties make up only 17% of the land area in the continental United States, yet 53% of the nation’s population resides in these locations. With sea level rise, erosion, and human disturbances all effecting coastal areas, researchers are working to find strategies to protect and stabilize current and future shorelines. In order to maintain shoreline stability while maintaining intertidal habitat, multipurpose living shorelines have been developed to mimic natural shoreline assemblages while preventing erosion. This project determined the effectiveness of a living shoreline stabilization containing Crassostrea virginica (eastern oyster) and Spartina alterniflora (smooth cordgrass) in the field and through …
Sex Ratios Of Juvenile Green Turtles (Chelonia Mydas) In Three Developmental Habitats Along The Coast Of Florida, Cheryl Sanchez
Sex Ratios Of Juvenile Green Turtles (Chelonia Mydas) In Three Developmental Habitats Along The Coast Of Florida, Cheryl Sanchez
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The concept of temperature dependent sex determination (TSD) has been somewhat of an evolutionary enigma for many decades and has had increased attention with the growing predictions of a changing climate, particularly in species that are already threatened or endangered. TSD taxa of concern include marine turtles, which go through various life stages covering a range of regions. This, in turn, creates difficulties in addressing basic demographic questions. Secondary sex ratios (from life stages post-hatchling) were investigated by capturing juvenile green turtles (Chelonia mydas), 22.6-60.9 cm in straight carapace length (SCL), from three developmental areas along the east coast of …
Population Dynamics And Environmental Factors Influencing Herbs In Intact And Degraded Florida Rosemary Scrub, Elizabeth Stephens
Population Dynamics And Environmental Factors Influencing Herbs In Intact And Degraded Florida Rosemary Scrub, Elizabeth Stephens
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Species have complex and contextual relationships with their environment; both the relative contributions of life-history stages to population growth and the effect of environmental factors on each stage can be different among co-existing species. Timing and extent of reproduction, survival, and mortality determine population growth, species distributions, and assemblage patterns. I evaluate the role of habitat (intact, degraded) and microsite (shrub, leaf litter, bare sand) on population dynamics of Florida scrub herbs. Isolated overgrown shrubs and extensive bare sand areas in degraded scrub were expected to decrease seed predation, reduce competition of herbs with shrubs, and provide larger habitat for …
Modeling Survival Of Immature Loggerheads (Caretta Caretta) And Green Turtles (Chelonia Mydas) From 10 Years Of Mark-Recapture Data At The Florida Power And Light St. Lucie Plant, Andrew Sterner
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Loggerheads (Caretta caretta) are listed as Threatened and green turtles (Chelonia mydas) are listed as Endangered under the United States Endangered Species Act. While green turtle nest production in Florida has increased markedly in recent years, loggerhead nest production has followed a more tenuous path. Reasons for these differences are unknown. Limited demographic information is available for these species of conservation concern. I used Barker models, which incorporated mark-recapture, live-resight and dead recovery data, implemented in Program MARK. These models were used to estimate apparent survival for immature loggerhead (
Disturbance-Based Management And Plant Species Change In Massachusetts Sandplain Heathlands Over The Past Two Decades, Kirsten Martin
Disturbance-Based Management And Plant Species Change In Massachusetts Sandplain Heathlands Over The Past Two Decades, Kirsten Martin
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Massachusetts sandplain heathlands are habitats of conservation concern, harboring many rare plant species and providing habitat for animals that depend on openlands. These heathlands are threatened by human development, shrub encroachment in the absence of disturbance, and potentially increasing soil nutrient levels. Sandplain heathlands are managed with prescribed fire, in order to maintain their open structure and maintain species diversity. In order to assess how past management was correlated with species change, I used a data set that spanned twenty years from three different heathlands in Massachusetts. I looked for correlations between management and species change. Correlations between species change …
Habitat Use And Feeding Ecology Of Delphinids Inferred From Stable Isotopes And Fatty Acid Signatures, Nicole Browning
Habitat Use And Feeding Ecology Of Delphinids Inferred From Stable Isotopes And Fatty Acid Signatures, Nicole Browning
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Prey availability, directly or indirectly, affects all aspects of a predator’s life history and is a primary factor influencing habitat selection and movements. This is especially true for delphinid species where it has been documented that the behaviors and movements of dolphins are strongly influenced by food availability. Unfortunately, the feeding ecology and habitat use patterns of many of these species are poorly understood. Many methodologies that have been employed to explore these facets of dolphin ecology have limitations and constraints or are logistically infeasible. Stable isotope and fatty acid signature analyses have been used extensively on a wide variety …
Estimated Diets, Diet Overlap, And Winter Habitat Associations Of Four Grassland Sparrows In Florida Dry Prairie, Marianne Korosy
Estimated Diets, Diet Overlap, And Winter Habitat Associations Of Four Grassland Sparrows In Florida Dry Prairie, Marianne Korosy
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
North American grassland birds show long-term population declines that generally exceed the declines of other bird groups. Efforts to conserve grassland birds require knowledge of diet and habitat requirements during both the breeding and nonbreeding periods of annual life cycles. This dissertation investigated sparrow habitat associations within two defined plant communities of the dry prairie ecosystem, the dry-mesic and wet-mesic prairie, for four prescribed fire treatments over two consecutive winters. Grasshopper and Henslow’s sparrows showed higher relative abundance in wet-mesic prairie and Bachman’s Sparrows were more abundant in dry-mesic prairie across all fire treatments. Abundances of Grasshopper and Bachman’s sparrows …
Biogeography And Systematics Of The Nerodia Clarkii/Nerodia Fasciata Clade In Florida, Gregory Territo
Biogeography And Systematics Of The Nerodia Clarkii/Nerodia Fasciata Clade In Florida, Gregory Territo
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Biogeography provides a window into the evolutionary history of populations, and helps explain the diversity and distribution of life through time. Viewed from a systematic perspective, biogeographic studies generate convincing arguments to explain the relationships among organisms and categorize them into useful taxonomies. When taxonomies do not reflect evolutionary histories, inaccurate representations of biodiversity confound future studies and conservation efforts. Two thamnophiine snakes, Nerodia clarkii and Nerodia fasciata, harbor unique morphological and ecological adaptations that obscured natural groupings, leading to controversial taxonomic delimitations. Additionally, population declines documented in N. clarkii compressicauda and N. clarkii taeniata led managers to list N. …