Life Sciences Commons^™

Management And Production Practices Of The Missouri Beef Cattle Industry, Jordan Lee Kinder

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

A survey of beef cattle producers in Missouri was conducted to evaluate the management and production practices of the beef cattle industry. Production and demographic data from 112 (response rate of 5.9%) were analyzed to identify areas in need of future research and education. The web-based survey was conducted through Survey Monkey© and distributed by the Missouri Cattlemen's Association to a list of their members. Responding producers were located in 65 of the 114 counties in Missouri, with 63.3% located north of Interstate 44 and 36.7% south of Interstate 44. The majority (47.3%) of producers were between ages 31 and …

Effects Of Low Concentrations Of Carbon Nanotubes On Growth And Gas Exchange In Arabidopsis Thaliana, Rajeeva Voleti

Graduate Theses/Dissertations

The effect of pure single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) on plant growth and gas exchange was investigated in Arabidopsis thaliana. To date there has been no research on the effects of SWCNTs on whole plant physiology. A. thaliana seeds were directly grown in growth medium containing SWCNTs concentrations of 24.93micrograms/ml and 53.55 micrograms/ml. control plants were grown in media containing distilled water. I determined growth by measuring dry mass of plants. I determined gas exchange by measuring photosynthetic rates, stomatal conductance, transpiration rates, and water use efficiency. I also examined the following physiological mechanisms that would limit plant growth: ATP and …

Detection Of Temporal Changes In Vegetative Cover On South Padre Island, Texas Using Image Classifications Derived From Aerial Color-Infrared Photographs, Ruben A. Mazariegos, Kenneth R. Summy, Frank W. Judd, Robert I. Lonard, James H. Everitt

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

Supervised image classifications developed from 23 x 23 cm aerial color-infrared aerial photographs (1:5,000 scale) were used to evaluate temporal changes in vegetative cover occurring within three 150 x 300-m research sites on South Padre Island, Texas. Use of high-resolution digitized imagery (ground pixel resolution of ca. 0.1 m) and survey-grade GPS for positional measurements of ground control points (20-25 1.0m2 targets within each research site) resulted in consistently high levels of geometric accuracy, with root mean square errors (RMSEs) ranging between 0.397 – 2.867. Similarly, use of relatively simple information categories (dry and wet sand, live and dead vegetative …

Tropical Forest Responses To Large-Scale Experiments, Aaron B. Shiels, Grizelle Gonzalez

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Although artificial by nature, experiments are a necessary part of ecology if we are to understand key mechanisms driving ecosystem structure and function. Experiments range in scale from microscopic to landscape; large-scale experiments are typically more logistically challenging than are small-scale experiments or observational studies. Recently, researchers have been interested in utilizing large-scale experiments to determine how forests respond to environmental change. Large-scale experiments have been more common in temperate than in tropical forests, yet tropical forests contain over half of the world’s species in just 7 percent of the world’s land area. Key threats to tropical biodiversity, such as …

Human–Carnivore Interactions: Lessons Learned From Communities In The American West, Julie K. Young, Zhao Ma, Ann Laudati, Joel Berger

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Types, causes, and intensity of human–carnivore interactions are related to historical context, management policy, and human perception. We used four rural communities in the American West with varying histories and management policies to assess the complexities of human–carnivore interactions and to determine factors influencing individual willingness to coexist with carnivores. By analyzing focus group and interview data from 49 community members, we found that human perceptions towards carnivores and their management were influenced by self-perceived knowledge about carnivores, ability to be heard and have a voice in management decisions, and economic concerns rather than ecological factors. Willingness to coexist with …

Cascading Effects Of Canopy Opening And Debris Deposition From A Large-Scale Hurricane Experiment In A Tropical Rain Forest, Aaron B. Shiels, Grizelle Gonzalez, D. Jean Lodge, Michael R. Willig, Jess K. Zimmerman

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Intense hurricanes disturb many tropical forests, but the key mechanisms driving post-hurricane forest changes are not fully understood. In Puerto Rico, we used a replicated factorial experiment to determine the mechanisms of forest change associated with canopy openness and organic matter (debris) addition. Cascading effects from canopy openness accounted for most of the shifts in the forest biota and biotic processes, which included increased plant recruitment and richness, as well as the decreased abundance and diversity of several animal groups. Canopy opening decreased litterfall and litter moisture, thereby inhibiting lignin-degrading fungi, which slowed decomposition. Debris addition temporarily increased tree basal …

Ecological Role Of Vertebrate Scavengers, James C. Beasley, Zach H. Olson, Travis L. Devault

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Scavenging, or the consumption of dead animal matter, has been documented for a wide array of vertebrate taxa by naturalists and researchers for centuries. Yet, until recently, the importance of scavenging-derived nutrients to many vertebrate species has been largely unknown (DeVault et a1. 2003; Beasley et al. 2012b; Barton et al. 2013). As a result, the role vertebrate scavenging plays in food-web dynamics relative to that of microbes and invertebrates has been greatly underestimated (Wilson and Wolkovich 2011) and has thus become an important area of research. Indeed, in some ecosystems, vertebrates have been documented to assimilate as much as …

Efficacy Of Potential Chemical Control Compounds For Removing Invasive American Bullfrogs (Rana Catesbeiana), Gary W. Witmer, Nathan P. Snow, Rachael S. Moulton

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Invasive American bullfrogs [Rana catesbeiana (Lithobates catesbeianus)] are outcompeting and predating on native biota and contributing to reductions in biodiversity worldwide. Current methods for controlling American bullfrogs are incapable of stopping their expansion, thus more cost-effective and broadly applicable methods are needed. Although chemical control compounds have been identified as effective for removing other invasive amphibians, none have been tested for American bullfrogs. Our objective was to expand on previous research and test the efficacy of 10 potential chemical control compounds for removing invasive American bullfrogs. After a dermal spray-application of 4 ml, we found 3 compounds (i.e., chloroxylenol, rotenone …

Flight Feather Molt In Yellow-Headed Blackbirds (Xanthocephalus Xanthocephalus) In North Dakota, Daniel J. Twedt, George M. Linz

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Yellow-headed Blackbirds (Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus) in central North Dakota undergo prebasic molt or prejuvenile molt during late summer. Nestling Yellow-headed Blackbirds initiate a complete prejuvenile molt, grow their primary and secondary regimes in about 40 days, completing molt after they leave the nest by the first week in August. Remiges are not replaced during the subsequent preformative molt, being retained until the second prebasic molt. Nonlinear (logistic) regression of primary remex growth during definitive prebasic molts of Yellow-headed Blackbirds indicated 38 days were required to complete the linear phase of growth (between 10% and 90% of total primary length). Males added …

Invaded Invaders: Infection Of Invasive Brown Treesnakes On Guam By An Exotic Larval Cestode With A Life Cycle Comprised Of Non-Native Hosts, Elden T. Holldorf, Shane R. Siers, Jonathan Q. Richmond, Page E. Klug, Robert N. Reed

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Background: Multiple host introductions to the same non-native environment have the potential to complete life cycles of parasites incidentally transported with them. Our goal was to identify a recently detected parasitic flatworm in the invasive Brown Treesnake (Boiga irregularis) on the remote Pacific island of Guam. We considered possible factors influencing parasite transmission, and tested for correlations between infection status and potential indicators of host fitness. We used genetic data from the parasite and information about the native ranges of other possible non-native hosts to hypothesize how it arrived on Guam and how its life cycle may be …

Impact Of Capture And Transportation Methods On Survival Of Small Rodents During Relocation Events, Roger A. Baldwin, Ryan Meinerz, Holly E. Jantz, Gary W. Witmer

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Capture and transportation of wild rodents is needed to supply study animals for laboratory or enclosure studies and for translocation of threatened and endangered species. Stress of captured rodents must be minimized to maximize survival. Methods to limit stress include minimizing capture and transportation durations, providing sufficiently sized housing with adequate nesting materials and foods, and ensuring that animals are maintained in comfortable environmental conditions. We utilized these techniques to capture and transport California voles (Microtus californicus) and pocket gophers (Thomomys bottae) from California to Colorado to determine their rate of survival during this process. We …

Evaluation Of Rhodamine B As A Biomarker For Assessing Bait Acceptance In Wild Pigs, James Beasley, Sarah C. Webster, Olin E. Rhodes Jr., Fred L. Cunningham

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Worldwide, there is growing interest in the use of pharmaceutical baits to control populations of wild pigs (Sus scrofa). In this study we evaluated the utility of Rhodamine B (RB), a chemical marker commonly used in wildlife research and management, as a potential biomarker for quantifying bait uptake in wild pigs. Thirty wild pigs were live-trapped, transported to a captive facility on the Department of Energy’s Savannah River Site located in South Carolina, USA, during autumn 2013, and administered RB orally at a dosage of 30mg/kg. Eight vibrissae and guard hairs were collected pre- and post-RB exposure (7 …

Cwd Prions Remain Infectious After Passage Through The Digestive System Of Coyotes (Canis Latrans), Tracy A. Nichols, Justin W. Fischer, Terry R. Spraker, Qingzhong Kong, Kurt C. Vercauteren

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Chronic wasting disease (CWD) is a geographically expanding prion disease of wild and captive cervids in North America. Disease can be transmitted directly, animal to animal, or indirectly via the environment. CWD contamination can occur residually in the environment via soil, water, and forage following deposition of bodily fluids such as urine, saliva, and feces, or by the decomposition of carcasses. Recent work has indicated that plants may even take up prions into the stems and leaves. When a carcass or gut pile is present in the environment, a large number of avian and mammalian species visit and consume the …

Evaluation Of 9,10 Anthraquinone Application To Pre-Seed Set Sunflowers For Repelling Blackbirds, Megan D. Niner, George M. Linz, Mark E. Clark

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Most nonlethal methods available for reducing blackbird (Icteridae) damage to sunflowers rely on fright responses (e.g., propane cannons, distress calls, pyrotechnics, raptor silhouettes) that birds quickly learn to ignore. Chemicals that cause taste or feeding aversions have potential to overcome the spatial and behavioral limitations of frightening methods. Anthraquinone (AQ) is an effective feeding repellent as a seed treatment to deter birds from eating freshly planted grains. In the United States, foliar application of AQ is not permitted on food crops except on small experimental plots. In August 2013, we applied 37.4 L/ha of an aqueous mix consisting of 15.1 …

Multi-Trophic Level Feeding Interactions Among Two Native And Two Non-Native Species: Implications For The Endangered Reticulated Flatwoods Salamander (Ambystoma Bishopi), Kelly C. Jones, Brandon K. Rincon, Thomas A. Gorman, Carola A. Haas, Richard M. Engeman

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Eglin Air Force Base (Eglin) in Florida is one of few remaining public lands where the Reticulated Flatwoods Salamander (Ambystoma bishopi) occurs, and it represents the only remaining location within the entire range of this endangered species to have two populations that both occur in wetland complexes with >2 occupied wetlands (Gorman et al., 2009). The decline of the species has been rapid and few remaining breeding locations for this species remain. It was listed as federally endangered in 2009 (USFWS, 2009). Flatwoods salamanders depend on complex herbaceous vegetation for all aspects of their life history and while …

Sunflower Bird Pests, George M. Linz, James J. Hanzel

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Sunflower (Helianthus annuus L.) is annually planted on approximately 26 million hectares in Australia, China, Europe, India, North America, Paldstan, Russia, South America, and Ukraine (National Sunflower Association, 2014). Flocks of granivorous birds, ranging in size from a few to millions, can be found in every sunflower growing region and have been documented to cause serious economic losses (Linz et al., 2011) (Figure 7.1). Avian species that damage sunflower generally belong to the parakeet (Psittacldae), dove (Columbidae), cockatoo (Cacatuidae), sparrow (Passeridae), crow (Corvidae), and blackbird (Icterinae) families (De Grazio, 1989; Linz and Hanzel, 1997; Linz et al., 2011; Rodriquez …

Serologic Survey Of Snowshoe Hares (Lepus Americanus) In The Greater Yellowstone Area For Brucellosis, Tularemia, And Snowshoe Hare Virus, Jack Rhyan, Dan Tyers, Jeremy Zimmer, Kristen Lewandowski, Steve Hennager, John Young, Ryan Pappert, Amanda Panella, Olga Kosoy

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

We examined sera from snowshoe hares (Lepus americanus) livetrapped in the northern Greater Yellowstone Area (GYA), US, for antibodies to Brucella abortus, Francisella tularensis, and snowshoe hare virus (SSHV). Zero of 90, 0 of 67, and 40 of 100 samples were antibody positive for B. abortus, F. tularensis, and SSHV, respectively. Hares were trapped from 2009 to 2012, and of the six animals that were captured twice with at least 1 yr between captures, four developed antibody to SSHV, indicating active exposure to the agent, These findings suggest snowshoe hares in the GYA do not play …

Food Habits Of Adult Male White-Tailed Deer Determined By Camera Collars, Michael J. Lavelle, Chad R. Blass, Justin W. Fischer, Scott E. Hygnstrom, David G. Hewitt, Kurt C. Vercauteren

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Many factors influence what and why animals select the foods they eat. Several methods have been used to estimate food habits of herbivores, but they all have limitations such as defining available foods and misrepresenting particular forages. We evaluated plant consumption by adult male white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) with camera collars in a semi-enclosed population in southern Texas, USA, during late autumn 2010. We collected 1,241 videos taken at all times of the day and night from 15 camera collars and confirmed consumption of 40 plant species with an 84% probability of identification. Diets of individual deer varied …

Boa Constrictor, Are R. Berentsen, Juan G. Garcia-Cancel, Edna M. Diaz-Negron, Oscar A. Diaz-Marrero, Alberto R. Puente-Rolón, Robert N. Reed, Kurt C. Vercauteren

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Evaluating The Reliability Of Field Identification And Morphometric Classifications For Carnivore Scats Confirmed With Genetic Analysis, Robert C. Lonsinger, Eric M. Gese, Lisette P. Waits

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Scat surveys are commonly used to monitor carnivore populations. Scats of sympatric carnivores can be difficult to differentiate and field-based identification can be misleading. We evaluated the success of field-based species identification for scats of 2 sympatric carnivores—coyotes (Canis latrans) and kit foxes (Vulpes macrotis). We conducted scat surveys in the Great Basin desert of Utah, USA, during the winter and summer of 2013, and we detected 1,680 carnivore scats. We classified scats based on field identification, recorded morphometricmeasurements, and collected fecalDNA samples for molecular species identification. We subsequently evaluated the classification success of field identification …

Contact Heterogeneities In Feral Swine: Implications For Disease Management And Future Research, Kim M. Pepin, Amy J. Davis, James C. Beasley, Raoul Boughton, Tyler A. Campbell, Susan M. Cooper, Wesson D. Gaston, Steve Hartley, John C. Kilgo, Samantha M. Wisely, A. Christy Wyckoff, Kurt C. Vercauteren

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Contact rates vary widely among individuals in socially structured wildlife populations. Understanding the interplay of factors responsible for this variation is essential for planning effective disease management. Feral swine (Sus scrofa) are a socially structured species which pose an increasing threat to livestock and human health, and little is known about contact structure. We analyzed 11 GPS data sets from across the United States to understand the interplay of ecological and demographic factors on variation in co-location rates, a proxy for contact rates. Between-sounder contact rates strongly depended on the distance among home ranges (less contact among sounders …

To Cross Or Not To Cross: Modeling Wildlife Road Crossings As A Binary Response Variable With Contextual Predictors, Shane R. Siers, Robert N. Reed, Julie A. Savidge

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Roads are significant barriers to landscape-scale movements of individuals or populations of many wildlife taxa. The decision by an animal near a road to either cross or not cross may be influenced by characteristics of the road, environmental conditions, traits of the individual animal, and other aspects of the context within which the decision is made. We considered such factors in a mixed-effects logistic regression model describing the nightly road crossing probabilities of invasive nocturnal Brown Treesnakes (Boiga irregularis) through short-term radiotracking of 691 snakes within close proximity to 50 road segments across the island of Guam. All …

Is There A Single Best Estimator? Selection Of Home Range Estimators Using Area-Under-The-Curve, W. David Walter, Dave P. Onorato, Justin W. Fischer

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Background: Global positioning system (GPS) technology for monitoring home range and movements of wildlife has resulted in prohibitively large sample sizes of locations for traditional estimators of home range. We used areaunder- the-curve to explore the fit of 8 estimators of home range to data collected with both GPS and concurrent very high frequency (VHF) technology on a terrestrial mammal, the Florida panther Puma concolor coryi, to evaluate recently developed and traditional estimators.

Results: Area-under-the-curve was the highest for Florida panthers equipped with Global Positioning System (GPS) technology compared to VHF technology. For our study animal, estimators of home …

Exposure Of Feral Swine (Sus Scrofa) In The United States To Selected Pathogens, John A. Baroch, Carl A. Gagnon, Sonia Lacouture, Marcelo Gottschalk

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Feral swine (Sus scrofa) are widely distributed in the United States. In 2011 and 2012, serum samples and tonsils were recovered from 162 and 37 feral swine, respectively, in the US to evaluate exposure to important swine endemic pathogens. Antibodies against porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PRRSV) and porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) were found in 2.5% and 25.3% of tested sera, respectively. Positive serological reactions against Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae and Actinobacillus pleuropneumoniae have been detected in 19.7% and 69.7% of animals. More than 15% of animals presented antibodies against these 2 pathogens simultaneously. Most animals were also …

Evaluating Fladry Designs To Improve Utility As A Nonlethal Management Tool To Reduce Livestock Depredation, Julie K. Young, Elizabeth Miller, Anna Essex

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Nonlethal deterrents against carnivores are important components to protecting livestock and conserving carnivore populations. However, the performance of the visual deterrent called fladry, a historical tool used to defend livestock from carnivores, is often hindered by design flaws that eventually reduce its effectiveness. Our purpose was to identify a fladry design that reduces coiling (i.e., wrapping of individual flags tight to the rope from which they hang) and maintains free movement of the deterrent in the wind. We created 6 new designs, replicated designs using 2 materials (nylon and marine vinyl), and compared them with the design most commonly used …

Evaluating Behavioral Syndromes In Coyotes (Canis Latrans), Julie K. Young, Marion Mahe, Stewart W. Breck

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

As more research focuses on behavioral syndromes and their role in ecological and evolutionary processes, it is imperative that methods to test behavior are valid. The objectives of this study were to (1) assess behavior in captive coyotes (Canis latrans) using three methods [agitation scores, novel object test, and flightinitiation distance (FID)] and (2) to determine whether the three tests were correlated within individuals to describe behavioral syndromes. Female coyotes had higher agitation scores during handling (2.6 ± 0.5) than males (1.5 ± 0.3; t = 1.90, p = 0.06): scores ranged from 0 to 8 on a …

Animal Reactions To Oncoming Vehicles: A Conceptual Review, Steven L. Lima, Bradley F. Blackwell, Travis L. Devault, Esteban Fernández-Juricic

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Animal–vehicle collisions (AVCs) are a substantial problem in a human-dominated world, but little is known about what goes wrong, from the animal’s perspective, when a collision occurs with an automobile, boat, or aircraft. Our goal is to provide insight into reactions of animals to oncoming vehicles when collisions might be imminent. Avoiding a collision requires successful vehicle detection, threat assessment, and evasive behaviour; failures can occur at any of these stages. Vehicle detection seems fairly straightforward in many cases, but depends critically on the sensory capabilities of a given species. Sensory mechanisms for detection of collisions (looming detectors) may be …

Widespread Detection Of Antibodies To Leptospira In Feral Swine In The United States, K. K. Pedersen, K. L. Pabilonia, T. D. Anderson, S. N. Bevins, C. R. Hicks, J. M. Kloft, Thomas J. Deliberto

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

As feral swine continue to expand their geographical range and distribution across the United States, their involvement in crop damage, livestock predation, and pathogen transmission is likely to increase. Despite the relatively recent discovery of feral swine involvement in the aetiology of a variety of pathogens, their propensity to transmit and carry a wide variety of pathogens is disconcerting. We examined sera from 2055 feral swine for antibody presence to six serovars of Leptospira that can also infect humans, livestock or domestic animals. About 13% of all samples tested positive for at least one serovar, suggesting that Leptospira infection is …

Anticoagulant Rodenticide Exposure And Toxicosis In Coyotes (Canis Latrans) In The Denver Metropolitan Area, Sharon A. Poessel, Stewart W. Breck, Karen A. Fox, Eric M. Gese

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Anticoagulant rodenticides are widely used in urban areas to control rodent pests and are responsible for secondary poisoning in many nontarget wildlife species. We tested the livers of five coyotes (Canis latrans) in the Denver Metropolitan Area, Colorado, US, for anticoagulant rodenticides. All five livers were positive for brodifacoum, with values ranging from 95 ppb to 320 ppb, and one liver was positive for bromadiolone, with a value of 885 ppb. Both of these rodenticides are second-generation anticoagulants, which are more potent and more likely to cause secondary poisoning than first-generation anticoagulants due to their accumulation and persistence …

The Effect Of Social Context And Social Scale On The Perception Of Relationships In Monk Parakeets, Elizabeth A. Hobson, Darlene J. John, Tiffany L. Mcintosh, Michael L. Avery, Timonthy F. Wright

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Social relationships formed within a network of interacting group members can have a profound impact on an individual’s behavior and fitness. However, we have little understanding of how individuals perceive their relationships and how this perception relates to our external measures of interactions. We investigated the perception of affiliative and agonistic relationships at both the dyadic and emergent social levels in two captive groups of monk parakeets (Myiopsitta monachus, n = 21 and 19) using social network analysis and playback experiments. At the dyadic social scale, individuals directed less aggression towards their strong affiliative partners and more aggression …