Animal Sciences Commons^™

Macroinvertebrate Composition In The Metarhithral Zones Of The Munzur And Pülümür Rivers: A Preliminary Study, Zuhal Gülteki̇n, Rahmi̇ Aydin, Carola Winkelmann

Turkish Journal of Zoology

The aim of this work was the determination of the macroinvertebrate community in the metarhithral zones of the Munzur and Pülümür rivers. This is the first documented research on macroinvertebrates in the metarhithral zone of the Munzur and Pülümür rivers in the region of the city of Tunceli. In total, 30 taxa of 9 orders of benthic invertebrates were recorded at the four sampling sites. Larvae of Taeniopteryx caucasica (Plecoptera), Oligoneuriella baskale, and Ecdyonurus dispar (Ephemeroptera) were recorded for the first time in the province of Tunceli.

Distribution And Conservation Of Acomys Cilicicus (Mammalia: Rodentia) In Turkey, Ortaç Çeti̇ntaş, Ferhat Matur, Mustafa Sözen

Turkish Journal of Zoology

Acomys cilicicus is endemic to Turkey and known from a very restricted area. The exact distribution of the species was not known up to now and the IUCN status of the species was Data Deficient (DD). To determine the exact distribution area of the species, 39 localities within the historical distribution were surveyed by using 3243 Sherman traps between 2013 and 2016. Turkish spiny mouse samples were obtained from 14 of these 39 localities and the current distribution of the species was determined. We found that the Turkish spiny mouse has two isolated populations in the area between Silifke and …

First Results Of A Faunistic Survey On The Orthoptera Of Jadovnik Mountain, Southwestern Serbia, With Data On The Calling Songs Of Some Bush Cricket Species, Slobodan Ivkovic

Turkish Journal of Zoology

During field trips conducted in 2015 and 2016 at 22 different localities on Jadovnik Mountain, 68 species were recorded. The calling songs of 4 species were studied in detail, and a new song type of Isophya clara was described. Metrioptera brachyptera and Locusta migratoria are rerecorded for the first time in 40 years for the Serbian fauna.

Three New Truncatelloidean Gastropod Species From Turkey(Caenogastropoda: Littorinimorpha), Mustafa Emre Gürlek

Turkish Journal of Zoology

New species of Bithyniidae (Pseudobithynia adiyamanensis sp. nov.), Hydrobiidae (Pseudorientalia ceriti sp. nov.), and Bythinellidae (Bythinella yerlii sp. nov.) are described from three different locations in Turkey. Samples were collected in 2013 and 2016 and the shell and male genital tract morphology of the new species were studied. All of these new taxa were compared to congeners that live in Turkey and adjacent countries.

Galliformes Specialist Group Annual Report 2016-2017, John P. Carroll, Simon D. Dowell

Galliformes Specialist Group and Affiliated Societies: Reports and Other Materials

Annual report of the IUCN SSC Galliformes Specialist Group, 2017.

Guidelines For Successful Gamebird And Songbird Feeding, C. Sánchez García, Francis Buner

Galliformes Specialist Group and Affiliated Societies: Reports and Other Materials

The key points of this research are:

• We studied the use of 259 feeders by wildlife using camera traps during early and late winter in 2012 and 2013, taking over 160,000 photographs.
• We worked on three farms in southern England where pheasants, grey and red-legged partridges were present and feeding was part of the existing game management programme.
• We used a feeder model consisting of a spiral feed dispenser attached to the bottom of a drum, suspended within a cylindrical iron armature clad with wire sheep netting.

Assessing The Efficiency Of Different Sustainable Farming Practices In Reducing The Environmental Impacts Caused By Aquaculture, Rajee Olaganathan, Alicia Tang Kar Mun

Publications

Sustainability of aquaculture is achieved when aquaculture farming systems are capable of preserving the natural resource base and involves an institutional change to the environment by the attainment and continued satisfaction for present and future generations. Sustainable farming practices produce sufficient aquaculture output to satisfy the seafood demand while not burdening the environment more. The potentiality and efficiency of different sustainable aqua farming practices in reducing anthropogenic impacts to the environment by aquaculture are assessed in this paper. Polyculture is mostly adopted by small-scale rural farmers as it requires low entry barrier and help in income diversification. The input of …

Impact Of Aquaculture On The Livelihoods And Food Security Of Rural Communities, Rajee Olaganathan, Alicia Tang Kar Mun

Publications

Aquaculture production has prospered rapidly since the 1970s and is considered as a part of the rural development program in many countries. The impacts of aquaculture on the rural communities in terms of livelihood and food security are assessed in this paper. Aquaculture contributes to the livelihood of the poor through improved employment and income. Aquaculture creates job opportunities for rural communities, especially for illiterate women to earn side income for the household. With increased financial ability, household manage to reflect stronger purchasing power and have better access to the resources. However, there is a controversy among the researchers whether …

Technological Modernization And Its Impact On Agriculture, Fisheries And Fossil Fuel Utilization In The Asia Pacific Countries With Emphasis On Sustainability Perspective, Rajee Olaganathan, Kathleen Quigley

Publications

Modernization is a process that moves towards efficiency. This affects most of the fields such as agriculture, fisheries, forestry, urban planning, policy, fossil fuel usage, manufacturing, technology, economic growth etc. This process plays a major role in moving forward making things faster, better and basically more efficient. The effects of modernization on all these fields bring about the major changes to aspects such as social, economic and the environment. The level of operation has increased from a domestic level; small family scale business to large commercial levels. As the level of operation increased, the utilization of natural resources increased gradually …

Habitat Useage Of Tri-Colored Bats (Perimyotis Subflavus) In Western Kentucky And Tennessee Post-White Nose Syndrome, Katherine Schaefer

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

The tri-colored bat (Perimyotis subflavus) has declined severely across its range since 2006 due to white nose syndrome, a fungal disease causing massive bat mortality in North America. My objective was to determine distinguishing characteristics of roost trees and habitat used by tri-colored bats so that the species’ needs can be considered in management plans. I mist-netted for tri-colored bats in western Kentucky and Tennessee during the summers of 2015 and 2016, and attached a radio transmitter to each captured adult bat. I tracked 15 bats to their day roosts and collected habitat data at 38 roost areas …

Habitat Usage Of Tri-Colored Bats (Perimyotis Subflavus) In Western Kentucky And Tennessee Post-White Nose Syndrome, Katherine Schaefer

Murray State Theses and Dissertations

The tri-colored bat (Perimyotis subflavus) has declined severely across its range since 2006 due to white nose syndrome, a fungal disease causing massive bat mortality in North America. My objective was to determine distinguishing characteristics of roost trees and habitat used by tri-colored bats so that the species’ needs can be considered in management plans. I mist-netted for tri-colored bats in western Kentucky and Tennessee during the summers of 2015 and 2016, and attached a radio transmitter to each captured adult bat. I tracked 15 bats to their day roosts and collected habitat data at 38 roost areas …

Frontiers In Otolith Chemistry: Insights, Advances And Applications, B. D. Walther, K. E. Limburg, C. M. Jones, J. J. Schaffler

OES Faculty Publications

The rapid proliferation of publications employing chemical assays of fish hard parts, and otoliths in particular, has led to many novel insights into the migration patterns, life history strategies and mixed stock dynamics of fishes across the globe (Campana et al., 2000; Elsdon et al., 2008; Walther & Limburg, 2012). These insights include uncovering diverse migratory strategies within species and populations (Kerr et al., 2009; Hogan et al., 2014; Schoen et al., 2016), quantifying rates of mixing among stocks across management boundaries (Rooker et al., 2008; Walther & Thorrold, 2010) and estimating the relative …

Beyond Zar: The Use And Abuse Of Classification Statistics For Otolith Chemistry, C. M. Jones, M. Palmers, J. J. Schaffler

OES Faculty Publications

Classification method performance was evaluated using otolith chemistry of juvenile Atlantic menhaden Brevoortia tyrannus when assumptions of data normality were met and were violated. Four methods were tested [linear discriminant function analysis (LDFA), quadratic discriminant function analysis (QDFA), random forest (RF) and artificial neural networks (ANN)] using computer simulation to determine their performance when variable-group means ranged from small to large and their performance under conditions of typical skewness to double the amount of skewness typically observed. Using the kappa index, the parametric methods performed best after applying appropriate data transformation, gaining 2% better performance with LDFA performing slightly better …

Dissonance Reduction In Nonhuman Animals: Implications For Cognitive Dissonance Theory, Cindy Harmon-Jones, Nick Haslam, Brock Bastian

Animal Sentience

We review the evidence for dissonance reduction in nonhuman animals and examine the alternative explanations for these effects. If nonhuman animals engage in dissonance reduction, this supports the original theory as proposed by Festinger (1957) over the revisions to the theory that focused on the self-concept. Evidence of animal sentience, including dissonance reduction, may be a source of cognitive dissonance.

Clarifying Concepts In Cognitive Dissonance Theory, Eddie Harmon-Jones

Animal Sentience

This commentary on Zentall’s target article focuses primarily on clarifying some postulates and variables in cognitive dissonance theory. I discuss the adaptive motivational functions of dissonance arousal and dissonance reduction, and attempt to clarify some past dissonance experiments and to tease apart a dissonance theory and contrast explanation of effort-justification-type effects. The evidence and arguments reviewed here support the explanatory power of cognitive dissonance theory in a wide variety of circumstances in human and nonhuman animals, but they depend on first defining concepts such as “cognitions” quite broadly, as Festinger did when he originally proposed the theory.

The Potential For Sentience In Fishes, Jay R. Stauffer Jr.

Animal Sentience

Balcombe’s book is filled with information on the biology, behavior, and life history of fishes. I do not agree with all his premises. I am still somewhat perplexed about the discussion of whether fish feel pain; I am not sure whether the distinction between nociception and pain makes any difference. Overall, however, his treatment of the principles of both natural and sexual selection is comprehensive and accurate, and has greatly increased my knowledge and awareness of the biology, ethology, and potential for sentience in fishes. In summary, this work has exposed me to new ideas about how to examine fishes …

An Analysis Of White-Tailed Deer, Odocoileus Virginianus, Killed In Deer Vehicle Accidents On Bulloch County, Ga Roadways, Mackenzie P. Payne 4003933

Honors College Theses

White-tailed deer, Odocoileus virginianus, are native to Georgia. With over 1.2 million individuals in the state, White-tailed deer have been implicated in a large number of motor vehicle collisions (ca. 1 million) each year. It is unknown, however, if deer are more likely to be killed: 1) if they are of particular ages (or classes), and 2) in areas with specific road characteristics. We addressed these two questions by collecting the remains of 20 White-tailed deer killed in deer vehicle collisions (“deer vehicle accidents” - DVAs) in Bulloch County, GA. When a deer was located, the road characteristics were …

Daily Distance Moved And Home Range Analysis Of Female Cheetahs On Namibia's Commercial Farmland, Elisabeth Nicole Wise

Honors Theses and Capstones

Fewer then 10,000 cheetahs remain in Sub-Saharan Africa. Namibia has the largest population, estimated to be 4,000. Habitat fragmentation and prey depletion from human expansion for agriculture has pushed 90% of cheetahs to reside on commercial farmland where there is an absence of larger predators. Radio telemetry was used to investigate the seasonal variation in home range size among nine female cheetahs on commercial farmlands on or near the Cheetah Conservation Fund in Otjiwarongo, Namibia. ArcGIS 10.3 and Geospatial Modeling Environment were used to calculate the overall and core home range size. This was estimated for the overall, annual, monthly, …

Effects Of Equine Assisted Activities And Therapies On Equine Stress And Welfare, Sarah Jean Reega

Honors Theses and Capstones

Equine assisted activities and therapies (EAATs) are becoming an increasingly popular approach for therapy, therapeutic recreation, and learning for a broad range of human clients and participants. In the EAAT field, most research has been human-centric, focusing primarily on benefits of EAATs for participants and clients. Relatively little research has been conducted on the effects of EAATs on equine stress and welfare for equines engaged in EAAT sessions.

The effects of equine assisted activities and therapies on equine stress and welfare were studied by way of exploring current EAAT professionals’ experiences and views related to equine stress and welfare in …

Effect Of Concrete Slats, Three Mat Types And Out-Wintering Pads On Performance And Welfare Of Finishing Beef Steers, Bernadette Earley, John Mcnamara, Stephen Jerrams, Edward G. O’Riordan

Articles

The objective was to investigate the effect of placing mats on concrete slatted floors on performance, behaviour, hoof condition, dirt scores, physiological and immunological variables of beef steers, and to compare responses with animals on out-wintering pads. Continental crossbred beef steers [n = 360; mean (±SD) initial live weight 539 kg (42.2)] were blocked by breed and live weight and randomly assigned to one of five treatments; (1) Concrete slats alone, (2) Mat 1 (Natural Rubber structure) (Durapak Rubber Products), (3) Mat 2 (Natural rubber structure) (EasyFix), (4) Mat 3 (modified ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA) foam structure) and (5) Out-wintering …

Shoring Up The Precautionary Bar, Jon Mallatt

Animal Sentience

I offer four ways to reinforce Birch’s precautionary principle so it can be used effectively and practically in deciding which animals to cover by legislation for humane treatment: (1) add one more credible indicator of sentience to the BAR rule; (2) use phylogenetic classification, not the outdated Linnaean classification, to test which animal clades have sentience; (3) disentangle the pain of suffering from sentience; and (4) reconsider the sentient status of decapods and insects to remove potential inconsistencies in the proposed framework.

What Harmful Practices? The Material Scope Of Animal Protection Legislation, Eze Paez

Animal Sentience

Jonathan Birch proposes a criterion for the subjective scope of animal protection legislation. He says nothing about its material scope: which harmful practices it should regulate. I argue, first, that most moral views would agree that the worst forms of animal exploitation should be legally forbidden, even if there will inevitably be disagreement about some cases of animal experimentation. I also argue that, when feasible, there should be legal provisions to help wild animals.

The Value Of Bayesian Statistics For Assessing Credible Evidence Of Animal Sentience, Anil K. Seth, Zoltan Dienes

Animal Sentience

Determining what constitutes practically relevant, statistically significant evidence for animal sentience, under the precautionary principle, could be enhanced through Bayesian statistics. A Bayesian approach allows the incorporation of multiple evidence sources through prior probabilities, the tracking of changing evidence across time, and a principled means of adjusting evidentiary bars via Bayes factors.

Chicken Of The Sea, Jonathan Balcombe

Animal Sentience

Marino summarizes research showing that chickens perform cognitively and emotionally at a higher level than previously assumed. Here, I describe capacities of teleost fishes that parallel those of chickens, including the ability to recognize human faces, perspective-taking, and referential communication. Research on chickens and on fishes reveals an emerging trend in cognitive ethology: abilities once thought limited to a scant few highly intelligent non-humans may actually occur broadly across taxa.

Anecdotes Can Be Evidence Too, Heather Browning

Animal Sentience

Birch’s criterion for the precautionary principle imposes a high evidential standard that many cases will fail to meet. Reliable, relevant anecdotal evidence suggestive of animal sentience should also to fall within the scope of the precautionary principle. This would minimize potential suffering (as happened in the case cephalopods) while further evidence is gathered.

Animal Pain And The Social Role Of Science, Leslie Irvine

Animal Sentience

Assuming that all animals are sentient would mean ending their use in most scientific research. This does not necessarily imply an unscientific or anti-scientific stance. Examining the social role of science reveals its considerable investment in preserving the status quo, including the continued use of animal subjects. From this perspective, the use of animal subjects is a custom that science could move beyond, rather than a methodological requirement that it must defend.

Fishes Are Gaining Academic Respect, Jonathan Balcombe

Animal Sentience

I respond to five commentaries on my 2016 book What a Fish Knows. The commentaries express more harmony than dissent about my interpretation of fishes as cognitive, aware individuals deserving better treatment by humankind.

Choice-Induced Preference: A Challenge For Contrast, Benjamin R. Eisenreich, Benjamin Y. Hayden

Animal Sentience

In his target article, Zentall asks: “to experience cognitive dissonance is it necessary for one to have conflicting beliefs or even beliefs at all?” He then argues that a simple behavioral process, the Within Trial Contrast Effect, may be sufficient to explain observed cognitive dissonance effects in nonhuman animals and possibly humans as well. We agree with Zentall that this effect is sufficient to explain many reported cognitive dissonance effects in nonhuman animals, but question its sufficiency for primate behavior (both monkeys and humans).

A Risk Assessment And Phylogenetic Approach, Culum Brown

Animal Sentience

The precautionary principal is often invoked when talking about the evidence of sentience in animals, largely because we can never be certain what any animal is thinking or feeling. Birch (2017) offers a preliminary framework for the use of the precautionary principal for animal sentience combining an epistemic rule with a decision rule. I extend this framework by adding an evolutionary phylogentic approach which spreads the burden of proof across broad taxonomic groups and a risk assessment component which magnifies the likely impact by the number of animals involved.

A Population Genetic Investigation Of The Reticulated Flatwoods Salamander (Ambystoma Bishopi) On Eglin Air Force Base, Alexander S. Wendt

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The reticulated flatwoods salamander (RFS) is an endangered salamander with a unique life history. One of the largest known, best studied refuges for RFS is found on Eglin Air Force Base, and these RFS have been sampled and managed extensively since 2010. My thesis seeks to better understand RFS by using genetic techniques to address several unknowns, including: 1) determining the population structuring of RFS and the manageable units for species conservation, 2) estimating the size and status of populations, 3) understanding dispersal of RFS and factors that influence this, 4) exploring the breeding biology and recruitment patterns of RFS …