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Genetic And Environmental Drivers Of Microbial Colonization In Wild Birds, Sage Rohrer
Genetic And Environmental Drivers Of Microbial Colonization In Wild Birds, Sage Rohrer
Dissertations
Wild birds are teeming with microorganisms, ranging from commensal bacteria to eukaryotic parasites. These microbes impact host health in diverse ways; some long-term residents may aid digestion or provide immune system training, while others at times may induce disease. However, the factors driving the varying colonization patterns seen across taxa are still not fully understood, and wild avian populations are particularly understudied when compared to mammalian or domesticated systems. This work examines the relative importance of genetic and environmental factors driving microbiome composition and function in wild birds. We collected fecal and blood samples from Galapagos penguins (Spheniscus mendiculus …
Parasitism Of Free-Ranging Neotropical Primates: Examining Parasite-Host And Parasite-Parasite Relationships, Gideon A. Erkenswick
Parasitism Of Free-Ranging Neotropical Primates: Examining Parasite-Host And Parasite-Parasite Relationships, Gideon A. Erkenswick
Dissertations
Parasites are infectious agents that require resources from host organisms to complete all or part of their lifecycles. It is customary for wild animals to acquire and maintain multiple parasitic infections during their lifetime. The effects of parasites on hosts vary across demographic and environmental variables, and in relation to each other. Moreover, the propensity for a host animal to acquire an infection can be influenced by other host species in the area that are susceptible to the same parasites. This dissertation describes and explores the natural parasite assemblage of a free-ranging community of nonhuman primates in the Peruvian Amazon …