Zoology Commons^™

Variations In Radial Maze Performance Under Different Levels Of Food And Water Deprivation, Robert H.I. Dale, William A. Roberts

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Four groups of rats were tested on an eight-arm radial maze under a free-choice procedure. The subjects were maintained at either 80% or 100% of their preexperimental free-feeding weights through restricted access to either food or water. Water-deprived subjects received water in the maze; food-deprived subjects received food. Water-deprived subjects learned the task faster than food-deprived subjects. The four groups developed different response patterns. These were measured by the mean transition size, the average angular distance (in 45° units) between consecutively chosen arms. Rats foraging for food and water developed different search strategies, with water-deprived subjects exhibiting lower mean transition …

Interactions Between Response Stereotypy And Memory Strategies On The Eight-Arm Radial Maze, Robert H.I. Dale, Nancy K. Innis

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Three groups of water-deprived rats collected water from the ends of the 8 arms of an 8-arm radial maze. Sighted subjects, and subjects blinded either with or without pre-enucleation experience on the radial maze, all retrieved the water efficiently. Most of the subjects exhibited the same response stereotypy, regularly choosing 8 adjacent arms of the maze, then stopping in the center of the maze. The strategies underlying this performance were analyzed by interrupting trials and rotating the maze 180° after the subject had made 3 choices. Sighted subjects depended on extramaze stimuli, naive-blind subjects depended on intramaze stimuli and experienced-blind …

Spatial And Temporal Response Patterns On The Eight-Arm Radial Maze, Robert H.I. Dale

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Six maze-experienced hooded rats were timed during five trials on which they collected water from all arms of an eight-arm radial maze, then made five more choices. All subjects frequently exhibited a “task-completion pause:” The subjects rarely spent more than 1 sec in the center of the maze between choices until they had entered all eight arms, then stopped in the center of the maze. In contrast, the time spent in each arm gradually increased until all of the water had been obtained, then decreased slightly. Four subjects began every trial by choosing eight consecutive adjacent arms. The task-completion pause …

Comparison Of The Symbiotic Fauna Of The Family Plethodontidae In The Ouachita Mountains Of Western Arkansas, Douglas A. Winter, Wojciech M. Zawada, Arthur A. Johnson

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

During the spring of 1985, 101 salamanders representing six host species (29 Plethodon ouachitae, 25 P. caddoensis, 6 P. fourchensis, 23 P. serratus, 13 Desmognathus brimleyorum, and 5 P. glutinosus glutinosus) were collected from six localities in three counties in Arkansas (Polk, Scott, and Montgomery) and examined for symbionts. With the exception of Hannemania dunni, all symbionts recovered from the first five species listed constitute new host records, and the endoparasitic fauna in all species establish new locality records. Examinations revealed one or more species of parasites in 82% of the hosts. Eight species of symbionts (3 nematode, 1 trematode, …

The Hold-Release Mechanism In The Family Crotalidae, Ronald K. Easter

Masters Theses

Strike/release vs. strike/hold feeding behavior was observed for 5 Crotalus atrox and 5 Agkistrodon piscivorous. Two sizes of warm blooded prey were offered to the rattlesnakes on alternate weeks. Cottonmouths were offered, alternately, fish or mice of equal size. Although data varied among individual subjects, cottonmouths offered fish demonstrated the strike/hold behavior significantly more often than the strike/release behavior; cottonmouths offered mice struck and released significantly more often than they struck and held. It is concluded that the strike/hold strategy in sreponse to fish is adventageous because the danger of holding such prey is minimal and the release of …

Factors Affecting The Predator-Prey Relationship Between Predaceous Diving Beetle Larvae (Dytiscus Fasciventris) And Two Anuran Tadpole Species (Bufo Americanus And Hyla Crucifer), Todd S. Campbell

Masters Theses

It has previously been demonstrated that American toad (Bufo americanus) tadpoles are more vulnerable to predation by diving beetle larvae (Dytiscus fasciventris) than are spring peeper (Hyla crucifer) tadpoles. A laboratory study was undertaken to further delineate factors that contribute to the differential vulnerability observed. Beetle larvae are more effective tadpole predators in shallow, than in deep, water and appear to prefer to adopt a "sit-and-wait" predator strategy while clinging to emergent vegetation. Depth preference experiments in the laboratory indicated that both tadpole species prefer deep areas to shallow areas irrespective of whether a …

Tagging And Marking Crawfish (Procambarus Clarkii) In A Population Estimation Study, Frank Meriweather

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Crawfish (Procambarus clarkii) were tagged with enumerated plastic streamers and released in 0.1-ha ponds to observe recapture frequency in stand-up traps. Also, crawfish were marked by a uropod punch, released and recaptured in 0.1-ha ponds for population estimation. Survival of streamer-tagged crawfish in indoor tanks averaged 46.7% after 25 days, indicating that tagging caused stress leading to mortality, especially during molt. Recapture frequencies of tagged crawfish indicated sampling bias which obviated use of the tagging method in population assessments. Short term (3-day) survival of marked crawfish (92%) and retention of the mark after molt indicated potential application in population assessment …

Late Prehistoric And Protohistoric Large Mammal Zoogeography Of Virginia, Robert K. Rose

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Evidence derived from18late prehistoric (middle and late Woodland Period) archeological sites, from several early historical accounts, and from the current understanding of the distribution of Virginia mammals indicates that the large mammal fauna of the Commonwealth has not changed substantially within the past 4,000 yrs. Some species (e.g., bison, elk, timber wolf, and mountain lion) have been extirpated since the settlement of Virginia by Europeans; some previously extirpated species (e.g., porcupine, coyote, and beaver) have been naturally or artificially reintroduced during the historical period, and others (e.g., woodchuck and red fox) probably have expanded their distributions as a result of …

Reproductive Strategies Of Meadow Voles, Hispid Cotton Rats, And Eastern Harvest Mice In Virginia, Robert K. Rose

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Patterns of reproduction in small mammals in Virginia were examined by autopsying samples of meadow voles (Microtus pennsylvanicus) collected for 23 months near Charlottesville, of hispid cotton rats (Sigmodon hispidus) collected for 14 months in Portsmouth, and by evaluating live-caught eastern harvest mice (Reithrodontomys humulis) trapped for 15 months in Suffolk and for 12 months in Chesapeake. The meadow vole, a microtine rodent with a north temperate and sub-arctic distribution throughout North America, suspended breeding during the winter of peak density but not of declining density. High metabolic rates and other adaptations for winter …

The Hippocampus As Episodic Encoder: Does It Play Tag?, Robert H.I. Dale

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Rawlins’s characterization of the hippocampus as a “high-capacity, immediate-term memory store” captures the essential idea in a number of previous models. For example, Gaffan (1974), Gray (1984), Hirsh (1980), Kesner (Bierley, Kesner & Novak 1983), Olton (Olton, Becker & Handelmann 1979), Solomon (1980), and Winocur (1980) all agree that hippocampal animals show memory deficits when required to identify, for whatever reason, one specific event out of a list of recent events. Although these authors disagree on a number of details, Rawlins has identified their models common ground, the core of each model. (It is only fair to note that Gaffan …

The Relationship Between Habitat Structure And Small Mammal Communities In Southeastern Virginia And Northeastern North Carolina, Roger Keith Everton

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

A variety of terrestrial habitats was pitfall trapped in the vicinity of the Great Dismal Swamp of eastern Virginia and North Carolina to evaluate the small mammal community within the region. Habitat variables were measured at the end of the growing season on 21 0.25 ha grids. Four multivariate tests were used to examine the small mammal communities, their relationship with habitat structure, and the role of habitat selection in community structure.

Cluster and ordination analysis revealed the existence of two distinct associations of small mammals, and their habitat types, within the region. The small mammal associations were interpreted as …

March Rice Rat, Oryzomys Palustris, Hugh H. Genoways

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Includes information on other names used, description, range, habitat, life history and ecology, basis of classification, and recommendations of/for the march rice rat, Oryzomys palustris, in Pennsylvania, USA.

Pygmy Shrew, Microsorex Hoyi, Hugh H. Genoways

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Includes the description, range, habitat, life history and ecology, basis of classification, and recommendations of/for the pygmy shrew (Microsorex hoyi) in Pennsylvania, USA.

Badger, Taxidea Taxus, Hugh H. Genoways

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Includes information on another name, the description, range, habitat, life history and ecology, basis of classification, and recommendations of/for the badger, Taxidea taxus, in Pennsylvania, USA.

Community Ecology, Robert K. Rose, Elmer C. Birney

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

COMMUNITIES with Microtus tend to be structurally simple, usually grasslands or tundra, and to have no more than two species of Microtus and rarely more than six species of small mammals. Microtus often dominates both numerically and in total small mammal biomass, especially at higher latitudes. The small mammal community is most influenced by Microtus through its fluctuations in density, and thus also in biomass, by its relatively high level of diurnal activity, and by its year-round activity. Other species of small mammals may be adversely affected because Microtus usually is larger and behaviorally dominant and also because the mere …

Introduction To Species Of Special Concern In Pennsylvania, Chapter 6--Mammals, Hugh H. Genoways

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

First two paragraphs:

The mammals in Pennsylvania have long been under the management authority of the Pennsylvania Game Commission, but it was not until 1978 that an effort was made to deal with threatened and endangered mammals in the Commonwealth. At this time, Michael J. Puglisi was appointed as Coordinator for the Threatened and Endangered Species Program within the Game Commission. In late February 1979, Mr. Puglisi asked Hugh H. Genoways to chair an informal study group on endangered mammals in Pennsylvania. The immediate concern of this group was to be the development of a list of threatened and endangered …

Age And Growth Of The Bluegill Lepomis Macrochrius Rafinesque From An Unmanaged Watershed Lake In Northeast Arkansas With Observations On Lake Ecology, Stephen A. Sewell

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Age and growth data were compiled on 114 bluegill, Lepomis macrochirus Rafinesque, taken from floodwater retarding structure #15 of the Big Creek Watershed project in Craighead and Greene counties of northeast Arkansas. This project was completed in the early 1960's by USDA-SCS. The 73 surface acre lake has not been managed for fish production and has been subjected to unscheduled water level manipulations during dry weather periods. These manipulations have maintained the bluegill population in healthy condition. The oldest bluegill collected were age class IV+. Average condition coefficient K(TL)declined from oldest to youngest individuals (2.96 in age class IV+ - …

Gametogenesis En Chthonerpeton Indistinctum (Gymnophiona: Typhlonectidae), Rafael O. De Sá, Nibia Berois

Biology Faculty Publications

RESUMEN:

Histológicamente, las gónadas de Chthonerpeton indistinctum son similares a las ya descritas para otras especies del orden Gymnophiona. Los lóbulos testiculares se hallan compartimentados en unidades estructurales denominadas lóculos. La espermatogénesis ocurre en cistos sincrónicos de células germinales. Durante la espermiogénesis se identifican cuatro estados consecutivos de desarrollo: 1) cistos de espermátidas redondeadas; 2) cistos de espermátidas arrifionadas; 3) cistos de espermátidas bastoniformes y 4) espermátidas en ramillete.

El análisis histológico de los ovarios mostró la presencia de tres estados en la maduración de los folículos ováricos. Estas etapas pueden ser identificadas de acuerdo a: 1) ubicación del folículo …

Estructura Del Ovario De Chthonerpeton Indistinctum (Reinhardt Y Lutken, 1862) (Amphibia: Gymnophiona) Durante La Gestación, Rafael O. De Sá, Nibia Berois

Biology Faculty Publications

La morfología e histología del ovario para varias especies del orden Gymnophiona ha sido reportada por Wake (1968, J. Morphol. 126, 291) y para C. indistinctum por los autores (1984, XXIV Reunión de Comunicaciones, Soc. Zool. Uruguay).

Continuando con los estudios sobre el aparato genital de esta especie vivípara, se presenta ahora la estructura del ovario durante la gestación.

Se procesaron con fines histológicos, ovarios de dos hembras grávidas colectadas en las costas de los Dep. Montevideo y San José en abril, 1983. El número de ejemplares trabajados es muy reducido dado lo difícil que resulta su colecta …

Demographic Analysis And Microhabitat Relationships Of A Small Mammal Community In Clearings Of The Great Dismal Swamp, Jean Ferguson Stankavich

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

Small mammals were trapped for 14 months on two grids located within a powerline right-of-way in the Great Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge. During 12,354 trap nights, individuals of 10 different species were captured. They included, from highest to lowest density, Reithrodontomys humulis, Ochrotomys nuttalli, Peromyscus leucopus, Blarina brevicauda, Synaptomys cooperi, Microtus pennsylvanicus, Microtus pinetorum, Sigmodon hispidus, Mus musculus and Oryzomys palustris. The demography (densities, reproduction, home range and dispersal) of each species was analyzed when possible. Most of the species were present in relatively low densities, with a number being captured only during the latter months of the study. …

Catalog Of The Recent Scandentia And Primates In The Carnegie Museum Of Natural History, Suzanne B. Mclaren, Duane A. Schlitter, Hugh H. Genoways

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

The Section of Mammals, Carnegie Museum of Natural History, houses six specimens of Recent tree shrews and 611 specimens of Recent primates. The only family in the Order Scandentia is Tupaiidae. Primate families represented are Lemuridae, Lorisidae, Cebidae, Callitrichidae, Cercopithecidae, Pongidae, and Hominidae. For each specimen the following data are recorded: locality; date collected; catalog number; sex; age; nature of specimen; condition of specimen and comments. The latter category gives information on the condition of the skin and skeletal material, and gives information on the availability of the specimen.

Results Of The Alcoa Foundation-Suriname Expeditions. Ix. Bats Of The Genus Tonatia (Mammalia: Chiroptera) In Suriname, Hugh H. Genoways, Stephen L. Williams

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Five species of Tonatia (bidens, brasilense, carrikeri, schulzi, and silvicola) are known to occur in Suriname. Tonatia bidens and silvicola are the largest in overall size (forearm length over 50 mm and greatest length of skull over 27.0 mm). However, T. bidens has a broader postorbital region (5.0 mm or more) and narrower mastoid region (less than 13.0 mm). The lower incisors of T. bidens are also noticeably broader than those of T. silvicola. These two species were found throughout most of the forested areas of Suriname. T. bidens displayed no secondary sexual …

Life History Aspects Of Reithrodontomys Humulis In Southeastern Virginia, Michelle Cawthorn Chandler

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

Reithrodontomys humulis, the eastern harvest mouse, is a small cricetid rodent which is common in old field communities in the eastern U.S. A live-trapping study was conducted in Suffolk, Virginia from March 1983 through February 1984 in order to learn the details of its life history and the vegetational characteristics which best describe its microhabitat. Specifically, population densities, trap-revealed survival times, home ranges, plant species composition of the study area, and vegetational structure were examined. In order to trap as many Reithrodontomys as possible, special traps which excluded animals weighing over 20 g were constructed. Densities of harvest mice …

Activity Levels Of Arboreal Rodents Peromysus And Ochrotomys Evaluated With Nest Cans In Seasonally Flooded Forests, John W. Walke

Biological Sciences Theses & Dissertations

The diversity and density of small mammals in the Dismal Swamp are believed to be small. To test this, four 1.96 ha grids were established and operated in the Dismal Swamp National Wildlife Refuge, from September 1981 to November 1982. Number 10 metal cans covered with plastic lids were placed as nest boxes at 0.5 to 1.5 m height on trees. A 2.5 cm hole allowed access by arboreal rodents, to each nest can. The activity level of the two arboreal rodents, Peromyscus leucopus and Ochrotomys nuttalli, was evaluated by observing types of activity ranging from presence of mice to …

The Hellbender, Cryptobranchus Alleganiensis, In Indiana, William H. Kern Jr.

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Very 1 ittle was previously known ubout the Hellbender, Crrp:t:£branchus alleganiensis alleganiensis, in Indiana. The purpose of this study was to determine its current range and status in Indiana and collect life history information. The hell benders were captured by hand from under rocks and 1d th hoopnets baited with cut fish. They were tagged, measured, wei~hed, examined for large external parasites, wounds, and reproductive cond:i - tion. Stoma ch contents were taken with a non-lethal, stomach-flushfog technique. The animals were then released at the site of capture. Al though they were originally found in the Ohio River, \\'hi tewater …

The Effects Of Mowing On The Rodent Community Of A Native Tall Grass Prairie In Eastern Nebraska, Cliff A. Lemen, Mary K. Clausen

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Our results indicate that mowing, like burning, greatly reduces the use of an area by Microtus and increases the density of Peromyscus maniculatus until the grass can grow back. Depending on the rate of growth of the grass this process can take more than a year. If the prairie is mowed every year to maximize the production of hay, populations of Microtus cannot be maintained at high densities.

The study site, Nine Mile Prairie, is one of the few natural tallgrass prairies remaining in eastern Nebraska. It covers about 240 acres and is located 5 km north and 9 km …

Microgeographic Variation In The Mexican Vole, Microtus Mexicanus, Meredith J. Hamilton, Gary A. Heidt

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Altitudinal variation was assessed in 115 (62 male; 53 female) Mexican voles (Microtus mexicanus) from six localities in Jalisco, Mexico. Univariate and multivariate statistical techniques were employed in the data analyses. A total of 49 skeletal measurements were investigated, and of these, 17 showed significant interlocality variation. Rostral breadth, depth of braincase, rostral height, width of third molar and nasal length were found to be the most variable characters. Component I (a size factor) accounted for 36% of the total phenetic variation; components II and III accounted for 30% and 19%, respectively. Larger individuals were found to occur at lower …

Limitations On Spatial Memory In Mice, Robert H.I. Dale, Martin Bedard

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Rats have an impressive ability to remember locations they have visited. Two experiments used an eight-arm radial maze to determine whether mice showed two important characteristics of this spatial memory: its durability, and its dependence on stimuli outside the maze (extreme stimuli). In Experiment 1, food-deprived mice were allowed to eat from four of the eight arms of the maze then, after delays of 5 sec, 1 min, or 5 min, they were permitted to choose the remaining arms. Choice accuracy declined significantly with the longer delays, but always remained above chance. In Experiment 2, the maze was rotated 180° …

River Otter In Arkansas Iii. Characteristics Of Otter Latrines And Their Distribution Along Beaver-Inhabited Watercourses In Southwest Arkansas, Mark R. Karnes, C. Renn Tumlison

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Forty-one river otter (Lutra canadensis) fecal deposit (latrine) sites were located during April 1983 through March 1984 along beaver (Castor canadensis) inhabited watercourses in Clark, Nevada, and Ouachita counties, Arkansas. Latrine sizes ranged from 64 cm² to 5.01 m² (x-bar=0.30 m²; S.D. =0.88), and contained 2 to 78 scats per latrine (x-bar=9.2; S.D. = 13.8). The most common sites for latrines included elevated leaf or moss covered banks (51.2%), beaver lodges or bank dens (17.1 %), and beaver scent mounds (12.2%). Other latrine sites included felled logs over open water, bare soil along elevated banks, and exposed sandbars. Otter presence …

Avoidance Learning And Memory In Largemouth Bass (Micropterus Salmoides) Fed Bufo Tadpoles, Randy John Gawlik

Masters Theses

Tadpoles of the American toad (Bufo americanus) have been shown to be distasteful to largemouth bass (Micropterus salmoides) predators who learn, on the short term, to avoid them. How long bass retain this learned avoidance of Bufo larvae is unknown so an experimental design was constructed in an attempt to answer this question.

Largemouth bass were divided into four treatment groups. Two groups were initially fed exclusively larvae of Bufo americanus (one group was fed large tadpoles, the other group fed small larvae). Similarily, the other two groups were initially fed spring peeper (Hyla crucifer …