Life Sciences Commons^™

Order Diptera As A Model In The Studies Of Insect Immunity: A Review, Danail Ilchev Takov, Peter Vladislavov Ostoich, Andrey Ivanov Tchorbanov, Daniela Kirilova Pilarska

Turkish Journal of Zoology

Order Diptera is the most important group of animals when it comes to insect immunity research. The largest share of experimental data in the group falls on the genus Drosophila - a model species with a number of advantages. Other crucial representatives are those of the mosquito group, as they are vectors of a number of infectious diseases infecting higher vertebrates and humans. As representatives of the genera, Anopheles, Aedes and Culex are very significant model organisms. In total, more than 40 dipteran species are being actively studied as models in various aspects related to immunity. Together with the representatives …

Diversity Analyses Of Nonmarine Ostracods (Crustacea, Ostracoda) In Streams Andlakes In Turkey, Mehmet Yavuzatmaca

Turkish Journal of Zoology

In order to compare species compositions of ostracods, 25 streams and 15 lakes were sampled in the spring, summer, and autumn seasons of 2018. A total of 26 ostracod species were found in lakes (18 spp.) and streams (12 spp.). The Shannon index (H') and evenness values of streams were higher than in lakes in all seasons. The highest H' values for all combined (lakes + streams) and lake data were reported in the autumn season, and in spring the highest values were in streams. According to the ß-diversity (ß) index values, the variability of ostracod species composition in lakes …

An Alien Species Or Another Perspective To The Freshwater Gobies Puzzle: A New Finding Inlake Prespa, Blagoja Trajchevski, Zoran Spirkovski, Dushica Ilikj-Boeva, Trajce Talevski

Turkish Journal of Zoology

Here we present a discovery of a new fish from the family Gobiidae in Lake Prespa, which is known as a European hotspot for biodiversity and endemism. This is the first detection of a fish species from this family, not only regarding this lake but also in the territory of the Republic of North Macedonia in general. The close examination of the recorded specimens revealed the presence of perianal organ surrounding the anus. This unique organ and various other observed morphometric and phenotypic characteristics point out to the genus Economidichthys. The two known fish species from this genus are currently …

The Spider Losdolobus Nelsoni Pompozzi, 2015 - The First Report Of The Familyorsolobidae In Uruguay (Araneae: Synspermiata), Luis Fernando García, Alvaro Laborda, Osvaldo Villarreal, Juan Burla, Enrique Castiglioni

Turkish Journal of Zoology

The family Orsolobidae Cooke, 1965, is newly recorded for Uruguay, with the first record of Losdolobus nelson Pompozzi, 2015, a recently described species that is endemic to the Buenos Aires Province, Argentina, and herein recorded in the Rocha and Montevideo departments. The biogeographic implications of this record are commented on and some data on the phenology of the species are presented.

Ecotoxicological Investigation Of Cyanobacterial Crude Extracts Todaphnia Magna Under Subchronic Test Conditions, Tan Duc Nguyen, Xuan Quang Ngo, Thanh Luu Pham, Thanh Son Dao

Turkish Journal of Zoology

Cyanobacterial blooms often consist of mixtures of microcystin-producing and microcystin-free species, and both can cause unpredictable effects on aquatic organisms. In this work, the subchronic effects of the cyanobacterial crude extracts (CCEs) from microcystin-producing and microcystin-free cyanobacteria with different microcystin concentrations (1, 10, and 50 μgL$^{-1}$)on Daphnia magna were investigated. The life-history trait responses of D. magna to CCEs were determined based on survival, reproduction, and somatic growth. In addition, the physiological response, represented by the feeding rate of D. magna on green algae (Scenedesmus sp.), after exposure to both types of crude extracts was estimated. Our results showed that …

Contributions To The Systematics Of The Family Buprestidae (Coleoptera) By The Firstdescription Of Male External Genital Organ And Illustrations Of Six Species From Ankaraprovince, Ali̇ Kemal Kirçakci, Mahmut Kabalak

Turkish Journal of Zoology

The main aim of this study is to contribute to the systematics relating to the family Buprestidae, by studying the male external genital organs (aedeagi) of six species belonging to the genera Acmaeodera, Acmaeoderella, Anthaxia, Capnodis, and Perotis, none of which had been illustrated previously. Samples of these species were collected from the province of Ankara, Turkey, and the aedeagus of each was described and illustrated in detail for the first time. The findings were then compared with the current literature.

The Occurrence Of Xanthochroism In The Thinlip Grey Mullet, Chelon Ramada(Teleostei: Mugilidae), From The Aegean Sea, Sencer Akalin, Zafer Tosunoğlu

Turkish Journal of Zoology

In this study, the first case of aberrant coloration, namely xanthochroism or xanthism, in the thinlip grey mullet, Chelon ramada (Teleostei: Mugilidae), was reported. The specimen was caught by a purse seiner in November 2019, in İzmir Bay, in the Aegean Sea, and was a female, with mature ovaries, which indicated that it had been in spawning migration or activity on the sampling date.

Effect Of The Prospect Of Transport On Captive Tiger Behavior And Fecal Cortisol In Naïve And Experienced Tigers, Callan Lichtenwalter

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

With close to 5,000 captive tigers in the United States, it is vital to ensure that these tigers are receiving adequate welfare whether they are in an accredited facility, or privately owned. The goal of this study was to assess whether captive tigers at a rescue facility with experience being transported outside of the facility would respond differently to the presentation of their transport vehicle than their naïve counterparts who had only been transported within the facility. The behavior of 5 naïve and 7 experienced tigers (n = 12) located at Turpentine Creek Wildlife Refuge in Eureka Springs, Arkansas was …

Obituary: Sydney Anderson (1927–2018), Scott Lyell Gardner, Robert M. Timm, Nancy Olds, Hugh H. Genoways

Scott L. Gardner Publications

On August 12, 2018, the American Society of Mammalogists (ASM) lost one of its giants of the latter half of the 20th century when Sydney Anderson quietly passed away at his home in Birmingham, Alabama, at the age of 91. “Syd,” to his many friends and colleagues, was born on January 11, 1927 in Topeka, Kansas, to Robert Grant and Evelyn Fern (Hunt) Anderson.

Anderson began his professional career at the University of Kansas, where for four years (1955–1959) he served as Assistant Curator in charge of mammals in the Museum of Natural History, and Instructor in the Department of …

Genetic Analysis Of The Endangered Gray Bat Species (Myotis Grisescens), Emma Fitzgerald

Lewis Honors College Capstone Collection

This study attempts to analyze the genetics using specific haplotype sequences of the endangered gray bat to determine genetic events that have happened in the past as well as determining how the species population has changed over time. We were able to conduct a Tajima’s D test to investigate whether a potential bottleneck has occurred. A linear regression of the genetic vs. geographical distance was produced to investigate the patterns of haplotype distribution. The species past distribution was compared to the current distribution using known collected specimens. A map of future predictions was constructed using present and future climate layers …

Granulosa Cell Proliferation Is Inhibited By Pge2 In The Primate Ovulatory Follicle, Patric S. Lundberg, Gil J. Moskowitz, Carmel Bellacose, Esra Demirel, Heidi A. Trau, Diane M. Duffy

Computer Science Faculty Publications

Prostaglandin E2 (PGE2) is a key paracrine mediator of ovulation. Few specific PGE2-regulated gene products have been identified, so we hypothesized that PGE2 may regulate the expression and/or activity of a network of proteins to promote ovulation. To test this concept, Ingenuity Pathway Analysis (IPA) was used to predict PGE2-regulated functionalities in the primate ovulatory follicle. Cynomolgus macaques underwent ovarian stimulation. Follicular granulosa cells were obtained before (0 h) or 36 h after an ovulatory dose of human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG), with ovulation anticipated 37-40 h after hCG. Granulosa cells were obtained from additional monkeys 36 h after treatment with …

Sampling The Local Fare: Fishes At The Sam Israel House Pit (45gr76), Soap Lake, Washington, Adam Fruge

All Master's Theses

The Sam Israel site is a precontact archaeological complex with numerous fish bones at the north end of Soap Lake, Washington. Excavated in 1976, the fish remains recovered from there were never fully analyzed prior to this research. Since this inland Columbia Plateau site had thousands of fish bones, it contained untapped potential for our understanding of ancient local fish procurement. As such, I conducted a detailed analysis of 2,862 fish bone specimens from the Sam Israel House Pit locus to: study a larger sample of fish bones in greater detail than was done before; compare the distribution of fishes …

Group Differences In Mother-Infant Macaca Fascicularis Behavior, Parasite Load, And Body Condition Within An Anthropogenically Altered Forest, Elizabeth M.C. Coggeshall

All Master's Theses

This study aimed to establish preliminary health and behavioral data, as well as understand group variation for a large population of Macaca fascicularis individuals within an anthropogenically altered monkey forest. A parasitic analysis of 40 mother and infant individuals showed that M. fascicularis carried 13 different parasitic taxa, and that there was parasitic variation between groups. Body condition scores were determined using a newly created and adapted body condition scale from 146 sampled mother macaques. Body condition scores were significantly different between groups, specifically the pond group when compared to the three other groups. Mother-infant behavioral differences were seen between …

Acoustic Analysis Of Nomascus Gibbon Songs As A Potential Measure Of Current Health Status, Caroline Rowley

All Master's Theses

Post-release monitoring is vital to the rehabilitation process. Gibbons offer a unique challenge, as they are notoriously difficult to follow through the forest, but their duets offer a non-invasive window into their lives. The aim of this project is to create a method that will evaluate the health of rehabilitated and released gibbons through acoustic analyses. Gibbon duets are in part genetically determined, but learning may play a role in song development. Additionally, songs may indicate resource holding potential, and are vital to acquiring mates and producing offspring. Captive-raised gibbons are often denied the experience of co-singing with their parents, …

The Natural History Of The Marsh Rice Rat, Oryzomys Palustris, In Eastern Virginia, Robert K. Rose

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

The marsh rice rat, Oryzomys palustris, is a common rodent in tidal marshes of eastern Virginia, including those on the barrier islands. It also is present in grassy old fields in upland habitats in the coastal plain and parts of the piedmont of Virginia. This report summarizes what has been learned in recent decades about the population biology of this species in Virginia, including aspects of behavior, density, diet, distribution, genetics, habitats, mammal associates, and reproduction.

Intraspecific Aggression Towards Common Bottlenose Dolphin Calves, Northern Gulf Of Mexico, Errol Ronje, Sarah Piwetz, Heidi Whitehead, Keith D. Mullin

Gulf and Caribbean Research

Infanticide has been widely documented throughout the animal kingdom, and has generally been viewed as an evolved, or adaptive behavior for the perpetrators. Infanticide motivated by increased sexual access to females with calves, or the elimination of potential genetic competition in the form of calf-directed aggression or infanticide, has been proposed for delphinids including killer whales, Indo-Pacific humpback dolphins, Guiana dolphins, and bottlenose dolphins. However, reports of intraspecific aggression towards bottlenose dolphin calves are relatively infrequent, and accounts of confirmed infanticide are rarer still. Reporting instances of intraspecific calf-directed aggression aids researchers to better understand the socio-behavioral context of these …

Impacts Of Inappropriate Human Possession Of Wildlife On The Animal’S Well-Being, Anika Frink

Honors Theses and Capstones

Wildlife rehabilitation is the temporary intervention by humans on sick or injured wild animals, who would not otherwise survive, with the goal of release. Individual states have their own guidelines for how to become a licensed rehabilitator with extensive standards in place for how to keep such wildlife. The standards help to keep the animals wild for their eventual release and to avoid side effects of Inappropriate Human Possession or IHP. IHP is when an unlicensed person attempts to rehabilitate a wild animal or to keep it as a pet. This study examines the effects of IHP on wildlife patients …

Morphology And Systematics Of Batrachoidiformes (Percomorphacea: Teleostei), Diego Francisco Biston Vaz

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

Batrachoidiformes, the toadfishes, are benthic fishes that inhabit nearshore subtidal and intertidal habitats, characterized by their dorsoventrally flattened bodies and large pectoral fins. These fishes lack dispersive larvae, and larval development is retained in nests guarded by their parents. To date, 82 species and 23 genera are accepted as valid. Previous studies recognized a single family, Batrachoididae, with four subfamilies: Batrachoidinae, Porichthyinae, Thalassophryninae, and Halophryninae. Interrelationships among subfamilies, however, are unresolved and interrelationships among species are problematic. Despite being a conspicuous member of the coastal fauna, the internal morphology of most species of Batrachoidiformes is unknown, being intraspecific and ontogenetic …

Selection Of Forage And Avoidance Of Predation Risk By Partially Migratory Mule Deer, Collin Jeffrey Peterson

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Migration by ungulates has traditionally been thought of as a strategy that increases access to forage quality or reduces exposure to risk of predation, but the benefits of migration may be waning globally. In partially migratory populations, the persistence of both migrant and resident strategies is an intriguing ecological phenomenon, because migrants and residents often face contrasting fitness consequences. Partial migration is common in mule deer (Odocoileus hemionus), a species that has experienced widespread declines across the western United States during recent decades. Mule deer seldom switch between migratory strategies throughout their lifetime, which may make them less resilient to …