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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

A Dietary Variety: Analyzing The Impacts Of Diverse Vs Worm-Exclusive Diets On The Blanding’S Turtle (Emydoidea Blandingii), Caitlin F. Copenhaver Mar 2024

A Dietary Variety: Analyzing The Impacts Of Diverse Vs Worm-Exclusive Diets On The Blanding’S Turtle (Emydoidea Blandingii), Caitlin F. Copenhaver

Honors Theses

The endangered Blanding’s turtle (Emydoidea blandingii) is a species with a generally diverse diet in their freshwater wetland habitats; they consume prey such as crayfish and snails. In captivity, these options often become more limited due to logistical reasons. As ex situ conservation efforts such as captive rearing and head-starting are becoming more popular for this species, it will be important to gain more insight on how these more limited diets might affect these turtles. This study describes a comparison between diets in six captive Blanding’s turtles from September to November of 2023, with three turtles receiving only …


The Effect Of Agkistrodon Contortrix And Crotalus Horridus Venom Toxicity On Strike Locations With Live Prey., Chase Giese May 2021

The Effect Of Agkistrodon Contortrix And Crotalus Horridus Venom Toxicity On Strike Locations With Live Prey., Chase Giese

Honors Theses

This paper aims to uncover if there is a significant difference in the strike location of snake species that have different values of LD50% venom. It is thought that most snakes strike their prey in the anterior (head) area in order for their venom to work quicker in killing them. Venom toxicity is measured by its LD50% value, which is the amount of venom, in mg/kg, to kill 50% of a test population. The Copperhead has an LD50% value of 10.9 mg/kg, and the Timber Rattlesnake has an LD50% value of 1.64 mg/kg. The hypothesis was that if venom toxicity …


Spatiotemporal Interactions Between Deer And Cattle, Sydney Brewer Jan 2021

Spatiotemporal Interactions Between Deer And Cattle, Sydney Brewer

Honors Theses

Mule deer, white-tailed deer, and cattle are sympatric on the landscape throughout many portions of Nebraska and encounter each other in time and space. By considering variation in daily activity patterns and non-random patterns in the timing of passage through specific locations, we can better understand whether animals may be avoiding each other temporally when sharing space. I investigated temporal activity patterns and avoidance/attraction ratios to investigate if deer altered their activity patterns in the presence of cattle and if they exhibited avoidance at a study site near McCook, Nebraska, USA. We collected data from 19 game cameras that were …


Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Technology To Enhance Conservation Biology Research, Ann Briggs Mar 2018

Using Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Technology To Enhance Conservation Biology Research, Ann Briggs

Honors Theses

This study examined the most effective ways to utilize unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) for wildlife conservation. More specifically, a UAV platform was created that can perform multiple data collection tasks by utilizing interchangeable modules. The prototype produced in this study has the capability to perform many tasks through the use of interchangeable modules. These tasks include, but are not limited to aerial surveys and collection of biological samples. This innovative technology will provide invaluable assistance to conservation efforts by reducing research and subject injury or death while maximizing efficiency. The modular design of the prototype was developed for retail to …