Life Sciences Commons^™

Coccidia Of Gerbils From Mongolia, Ethan T. Jensen

School of Biological Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

In this study, gerbils collected in the Mongolia over the summers of 2009-2012 were examined for coccidia. In total, 171 gerbils of three species from 22 localities were examined for coccidia. Coccidian oocysts were identified from 21 gerbils, but those found in 1 of those gerbils were probably pseudoparasites of the host from which they were recovered. From the remaining 20 gerbils, 7 morphotypes of Eimeria and 1 morphotype of Isospora were identified. Four of the 7 morphotypes of Eimeria were attributed to new species which were described in this study. In addition, 10 previously described species of Eimeria were …

The Complexities Of Wolf Spider Communication: Exploring Courtship Signal Function In Rabidosa Rabida, Dustin J. Wilgers

School of Biological Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Evidence of signal complexity is seemingly pervasive across animal communication systems. Exploring signal function may provide insight into how these displays evolved and are maintained. This dissertation examines the courtship signal function in a grassland wolf spider. Rabidosa rabida lives in an extremely complex environment, and males use complex displays incorporating both visual and seismic modalities. Using several approaches I provide insight into the content and efficacy of the various signal components, as well as how variation in these displays influence female mating decisions in isolation and combined.

First, I manipulated male and female body condition using diet quantity manipulations …

Multilocus And Parametric Analyses Of The Evolutionary History Of The Amazonian Peacock Cichlids, The Genus Cichla (Teleostei: Cichlidae), Stuart Willis

School of Biological Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Accurate knowledge of species boundaries and species phylogeny are fundamental to testing hypotheses of recent evolutionary processes, but the estimation of these partitions is challenging due both to inherent confusion about what is being estimated as well as the data available to estimate them. Using multilocus data from mtDNA, microsatellites, and nuclear locus sequences of over 1100 individuals, we delimited eight separately evolving species of Cichla rather than the 15 described. Among species we found evidence of rare but widespread introgressive hybridization, while within these species we observed evidence of long-term gene exchange and constrained evolutionary trajectories. In most cases …

Ecology And Relationships Of Rhabdias Spp. (Nematoda: Rhabdiasidae) From North American Amphibians And Reptiles, Gabriel J. Langford

School of Biological Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Lungworms of the cosmopolitan genus Rhabdias (Nematoda: Rhabdiasidae) are among the most common parasites of amphibians and squamate reptiles. The life cycles, life histories, host specificities, and evolutionary relationships of Rhabdias spp. were studied through examination of their free-living and parasitic stages in amphibians and reptiles. This study found free-living development of anuran lungworms was primarily limited to heterogonic reproduction, whereas snake lungworms primarily reproduced homogonically. Infective anuran lungworms penetrated the skin of frogs and toads; in contrast, snake lungworms penetrated snake esophageal tissue during per os infections. Our molecular phylogeny strongly supported separate clades for anuran and snake lungworms, …

Taxonomic Revision Of Species Of The Genus Monoecocestus (Cestoda: Anoplocephalidae), Terry R. Haverkost

School of Biological Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

My dissertation research is an important contribution to the taxonomy of anoplocephalid cestodes. Almost all research conducted for these chapters was done by staining, mounting, and measuring anoplocephalid cestodes from the Bolivian Biodiversity Survey conducted in Bolivia from 1984-2000. These specimens were collected and processed in the field and deposited in the Harold W. Manter Laboratory of Parasitology. I was particularly interested in species of the genus Monoecocestus Beddard, 1914 that parasitize caviid and sigmodontine rodents. In all instances, the material studied has lead to the description of new species or the redescription of existing species of Monoecocestus. In …