Biology Commons^™

Analysis Of Genotypic And Phenotypic Differences In Desmognathus Quadramaculatus Across The Southern Appalachians, Deborah Susan Merritt

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Populations of Desmognathus quadramaculatus were compared for genotypic and phenotypic differences across 5 states in the Southern Appalachians. Series consisting of 10 salamanders each were collected from West Virginia, Virginia, Tennessee, North Carolina and Georgia. Salamanders were assessed for genotypic differences by using allozyme (proteins with polymorphic loci) electrophoresis staining for 13 loci of the muscle, liver and stomach tissue. Nei’s genetic distance was used to score genetic variation between populations. Phenotypic differences were assessed by comparing 10 external morphological measurements between populations. Mahalanobis’ distance was used to score morphological differences between populations. Both genetic and morphological differences were correlated …

Descriptive Ecology Of A Turtle Assemblage In An Urban Landscape, Conner C. A, B A. Douthitt, Travis J. Ryan

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

We studied turtle populations inhabiting a canal and a lake (both man-made) within a heavily disturbed, urban setting. Six aquatic and semi-aquatic turtle species were collected in both habitats: spiny softshell turtle (Apolone spinifera), painted turtle (Chrysemys picta), common snapping turtle (Chelydra serpentina), common map turtle (Graptemys geographica), common musk turtle (Sternotherus odoratus) and red-eared slider (Trachemys scripta). While G. geographica was the most common species in the canal habitat, T. scripta was most common in the lake habitat. We describe patterns of sexual size dimorphism and sex ratios for the three most abundant species (G. geographica, T. scripta and …

Effects Of Endogenous Steroid Hormone Levels On Annual Survival In Cliff Swallows, Charles R. Brown, Mary Bomberger Brown, Samrrah A. Raouf, Linda C. Smith, John C. Wingfield

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

The hormone corticosterone is an important part of animals’ response to environmental stress, modulating short-term adaptive changes in behavior and physiology. The hormone testosterone is also critical, especially for males, in regulating the expression of sexual behavior and parental care. These hormones can have costly consequences, however, and within populations individuals show variation in endogenous levels of both corticosterone and testosterone. We studied how annual survival varied as a function of natural levels of these hormones in colonially breeding Cliff swallows (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota) in southwestern Nebraska, USA, in 2000–2003. We sampled hormone levels of birds caught at colonies …

Testosterone And Group Size In Cliff Swallows: Testing The “Challenge Hypothesis” In A Colonial Bird, Linda C. Smith, Samrrah A. Raouf, Mary Bomberger Brown, John C. Wingfield, Charles R. Brown

School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications

The “challenge hypothesis” states that increases in testosterone levels of male animals during the breeding season are directly related to the extent of intrasexual competition for resources or mates that they experience. Although often tested in territorial species, the challenge hypothesis has not been evaluated for colonial animals that live in groups of different sizes and that thus experience different intensities of intrasexual competition. We measured circulating testosterone levels of male and female cliff swallows (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota) in southwestern Nebraska, where these birds nest in colonies of widely different sizes. Males had significantly higher testosterone levels than females, …

Are Leptodactylus Didymus And L. Mystaceus Phylogenetically Sibling Species (Amphibia, Anura, Leptodactylidae)?, Rafael O. De Sá, W. R. Heyer, Arley Camargo

Biology Faculty Publications

The Leptodactylus fuscus species group consists of 25 currently recognized species; within this species group and distributed throughout the Amazon Basin, Atlantic Forests, Gran Chaco, and cerrados is the L. mystaceus species complex. This species complex consists of L. didymus, L. elenae, L. mystaceus, L. notoaktites, and L. spixi. Adult morphologies have been used to distinguish these species from each other except for L. didymus and L. mystaceus (Heyer, 1978; Heyer et al., 1996). Leptodactylus didymus and L. mystaceus are morphologically indistinguishable; the species are recognizable only by the characteristics of their advertisement calls: non-pulsed in L. didymus and pulsed …

Furniture Usage And Activity Budgets Of Captive Black And White Ruffed Lemurs (Varecia Variegata Variegata) And Ring- Tailed Lemurs (Lemur Catta) At Bramble Park Zoo, Watertown, South Dakota, Zarah Hedge

The Journal of Undergraduate Research

A behavioral study was conducted on the black and white ruffed lemurs and ring-tailed lemurs at Bramble Park Zoo in summer 2004 to determine if the furniture in the exhibit was sufficient to enable them to display their natural behaviors. The study was performed using a time sampling method of one minute, and ten hours of data was gathered. Both species of lemur spent a significant portion of the observed time resting, more so than has been found in wild populations of lemurs. The time spent foraging (.33% and 2.5% for the ruffed lemurs and 2.1% for the ring-tails) and …

Biochemical And Molecular Nutrition Blocks As Dietary Supplements In Llamas (Lama Glama) In The Last Third Of The Gestation Period Of The Ceac, Janette Illanes Callejas

Theses and Dissertations

The present work consisted in the use of biochemical and molecular nutrition blocks (BMN) in llamas during the last third of the gestation period, at the Agricultural Experiment Center of Condori (CEAC), located 49 km north of the city of Oruro, and 12 km north of the Caracollo population, in the province of Cercado. For this research work, we used 20 pregnant llamas in the last third of their gestation period, between the ages of 2 and 3 years old, 10 of which belonged to the Khara breed, and 10 to the Thampulli breed. Two corrals of 7 x 7 …

Mechanical Properties Of The Integument Of The Common Gartersnake, Thamnophis Sirtalis (Serpentes: Colubridae), Gabriel Rivera, Alan H. Savitzky, Jeffrey A. Hinkley

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

The evolution of the ophidian feeding mechanism has involved substantial morphological restructuring associated with the ability to ingest relatively large prey. Previous studies examining the morphological consequences of macrophagy have concentrated on modifications of the skull and cephalic musculature. Although it is evident that macrophagy requires highly compliant skin, the mechanical properties of the ophidian integument have received limited attention, particularly in the context of feeding. We examined mechanical properties of skin along the body axis in Thamnophis sirtalis (Colubridae). Data were collected from tensile tests and were analyzed using a multivariate analysis of variance (MANOVA) and post-hoc multiple comparison …

Effect Of Stocking Density On Sunshine Bass (Morone Chrysops X M. Saxatilis) Production And Water Quality At Minor Clark Fish Hatchery, Kentucky, Todd A. Leonard

Morehead State Theses and Dissertations

A thesis presented to the faculty of the College of Science and Technology at Morehead State University in partial fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science by Todd A. Leonard on December 15, 2004.

Use Of Cre Recombinase And Sb Transposase To Engineer Transgenic Zebrafish, Jie Dong

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Current transgenesis has become easier for certain species due to the recent development of exogenous non site-specific recombination systems such as Sleeping Beauty (SB) transposon, and site-specific recombination systems such as Cre-loxP. Such recombination systems overcame two major problems caused by conventional transgenesis, position effect and copy number effect. SB is a reconstructed fish transposon that has shown to efficiently insert transgenes into heterologous mammalian chromosomes. The Cre-loxP system is frequently used to delete a given sequence from the genome or to target the integration of foreign DNA. The use of both systems in combination, however, has not yet been …

Renesting Decisions And Annual Fecundity Of Female Dickcissels (Spiza Americana) In Illinois, Jeffrey W. Walk, Kevin Wentworth, Eric L. Kershner, Eric K. Bollinger, Richard E. Warner

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

ABSTRACT.-Renesting decisions and annual fecundity are crucial for interpreting other demographic information, yet are infrequently reported. We used radiotelemetry to monitor female Dickcissels (Spiza americana) throughout the 1999 and 2000 breeding seasons in southeastern Illinois. Overall fecundity (regardless of whether females remained in the study area throughout the breeding season) was 0.61 ± 0.13 female fledglings per year. Of females that remained within the study area, 94% fledged young (1.25 ± 0.15 female fledglings per year). Most females (62%) that experienced nest failure emigrated from the study area (moved >10 km) in 2.8 ± 0.6 days; others (36%) initiated subsequent …

Renesting Decisions And Annual Fecundity Of Female Dickcissels (Spiza Americana) In Illinois, Jeffrey Walk, Kevin Wentworth, Eric Kershner, Eric Bollinger, Richard Warner

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

ABSTRACT.-Renesting decisions and annual fecundity are crucial for interpreting other demographic information, yet are infrequently reported. We used radiotelemetry to monitor female Dickcissels (Spiza americana) throughout the 1999 and 2000 breeding seasons in southeastern Illinois. Overall fecundity (regardless of whether females remained in the study area throughout the breeding season) was 0.61 ± 0.13 female fledglings per year. Of females that remained within the study area, 94% fledged young (1.25 ± 0.15 female fledglings per year). Most females (62%) that experienced nest failure emigrated from the study area (moved >10 km) in 2.8 ± 0.6 days; others (36%) initiated subsequent …

Woodland Amphibian Distribution In Parks And Greenspaces Of The Portland, Oregon Metropolitan Area: A Multiple Scale Investigation, Laura A. Roberts

Dissertations and Theses

Loss of biodiversity due to habitat fragmentation is worldwide problem. With growing human populations and increasing urbanization, it is a necessity to conduct studies on wildlife occurring in urban areas. Currently there is a deficit of research investigating woodland amphibians in urban environments. My objectives were to describe amphibian species richness and abundance in the Portland, Oregon, Metropolitan region, and relate patterns of variation to variables at three increasingly large spatial scales: 1) local microenvironmental (i.e. amphibian/substrate interaction), (2) macrohabitat/patch (i.e. park or greenspace), and 3) landscape (surrounding parks and greenspaces). Environmental variables occurring within the three spatial scales were …

Synaptic Transformations Underlying Highly Selective Auditory Representations Of Learned Birdsong, Melissa J. Coleman, Richard Mooney

WM Keck Science Faculty Papers

Stimulus-specific neuronal responses are a striking characteristic of several sensory systems, although the synaptic mechanisms underlying their generation are not well understood. The songbird nucleus HVC (used here as a proper name) contains projection neurons (PNs) that fire temporally sparse bursts of action potentials to playback of the bird's own song (BOS) but are essentially silent when presented with other acoustical stimuli. To understand how such remarkable stimulus specificity emerges, it is necessary to compare the auditory-evoked responsiveness of the afferents of HVC with synaptic responses in identified HVC neurons. We found that inactivating the interfacial nucleus of the nidopallium …

The Mayfly Newsletter, Peter M. Grant

The Mayfly Newsletter

The Mayfly Newsletter is the official newsletter of the Permanent Committee of the International Conferences on Ephemeroptera.

Agribusiness Sheep Updates - 2004 Part 3, Ken Hart, Keith Croker, Rob Davidson, Mario D'Antuono, Evan Burt, Tanya Kilminster, Diana Fedorenko, Darryl Mcclements, Robert Beard, Sandy Turton, Martin Atwell, Robert Beard

Sheep Updates

Posters Can Merino Ewes be Teased to Synchronise Oestrus for a Summer/Autumn Mating? Ken Hart, Keith Croker, Department of Agriculture Western Australia, Rob Davidson, School of Animal Biology, University of Western Australia. Mario D'Antuono, Department of Agriculture Western Australia Damara Sheep: Now Looking Domestic Evan Burt and Tanya Kilminster, Department of Agriculture Western Australia Production and Water Use of Lucerne and French Serradella Under Three Sowing Rates Diana Fedorenko1,4, Darryl McClements1,4 , Robert Beard3,4 1Department of Agriculture, 3 Farmer, Meckering, 4CRC for Plant-based Management of Dryland Salinity. E-SHEEP - Individual Animal Management is here Sandy Turton & Martin Atwell, Department …

Responses Of Nesting Bobolinks (Dolichonyx Oryzivorus) To Habitat Edges, Eric K. Bollinger, Thomas A. Gavin

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

T.-Avoidance of habitat edges may be contributing to reduced densities of grass- land birds in small habitat patches. Nest densities for grassland-nesting Bobolinks (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) were much lower than expected within 25 m of forest edges at three sites in New York, and that pattern ("edge avoidance") extended to 100 m at one site. Nests located within 50 m of forest or wooded hedgerow edges had lower daily survival rates, compared with nests >100 m from any habitat edge. Bobolinks tended to move away from forest edges when renest- ing after nest failure; that pattern was especially evident in females …

Responses Of Nesting Bobolinks (Dolichonyx Oryzivorus) To Habitat Edges, Eric Bollinger, Thomas Gavin

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

T.-Avoidance of habitat edges may be contributing to reduced densities of grass- land birds in small habitat patches. Nest densities for grassland-nesting Bobolinks (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) were much lower than expected within 25 m of forest edges at three sites in New York, and that pattern ("edge avoidance") extended to 100 m at one site. Nests located within 50 m of forest or wooded hedgerow edges had lower daily survival rates, compared with nests >100 m from any habitat edge. Bobolinks tended to move away from forest edges when renest- ing after nest failure; that pattern was especially evident in females …

Responses Of Nesting Bobolinks (Dolichonyx Oryzivorus) To Habitat Edges, Eric K. Bollinger, Thomas A. Gavin

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

ABSTRACT.-Avoidance of habitat edges may be contributing to reduced densities of grassland birds in small habitat patches. Nest densities for grassland-nesting Bobolinks (Dolichonyx oryzivorus) were much lower than expected within 25m of forest edges at three sites in New York, and that pattern ("edge avoidance") extended to 100m at one site. Nests located within 50 m of forest or wooded hedgerow edges had lower daily survival rates, compared with nests >100m from any habitat edge. Bobolinks tended to move away from forest edges when renesting after nest failure; that pattern was especially evident in females that placed their first nest …

Alfred Russel Wallace: A Capsule Biography, Charles H. Smith

DLPS Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A New Toad (Anura: Bufonidae) From Uruguay, Raúl Maneyro, Diego Arrieta, Rafael O. De Sá

Biology Faculty Publications

A new species of toad is described from small streams in the hills of Cuchilla de Haedo and Cuchilla Grande in northeastern Uruguay. Specimens of the new species were previously mistaken for Bufo arenarum; they differ from B.arenarum by having elongated parotoid glands and reddish-brown parotoid and cephalic crests. A discriminant analysis resulted in three groups corresponding to B. arenarum, Bufo rufus, and the specimens herein described as a new species.

A New Species Of Callulina (Anura: Microhylidae) From The West Usambara Mountains, Tanzania, Rafael O. De Sá, Simon P. Loader, Alan Channing

Biology Faculty Publications

The description of the species Callulina kreffti was based on specimens collected in the East Usambara Mountains of Tanzania. Successive collecting has shown this species to be widely distributed through the Eastern Arc Mountains. Advertisement calls from populations in the type locality of Callulina kreffti were compared with calls from populations in the West Usambara Mountains. Analysis of the calls suggested that these two populations of Callulina represent two separate taxa. Subsequent morphological and molecular investigations indicated that these two populations are distinct. Herein, we describe a new Callulina species on the basis of call, morphology and molecular sequences.

Moisture Potential Affects Rate Of Leaf Appearance In Cool Season Grasses, Nina Cherone Terrell

McCabe Thesis Collection

The rate of leaf appearance and onset of growth in cool season grasses may be influenced by soil moisture potential and exposure to below freezing temperatures. Levels of moisture potential and days exposed to freezing temperatures, which will restrict leaf appearance, are not well defined. The first part of this study was to determine the effects of different moisture potentials on the leaf appearance rates in two cool season grasses. Italian ryegrass (IRG) and tall wheat grass (TWG) were grown hydroponically at 4 moisture potentials in seed pouches in an incubator under a photoperiod of 13 hours light and 11 …

Rare, Threatened And Endangered Species Of Oregon (2004), James S. Kagan, Sue Vrilakas, Eleanor P. Gaines, Cliff Alton, Fern Mcarthur, Kuuipo Walsh, Eric Scheuering, John A. Christy, Jon Hak, Claudine Tobalske, Annie Weiland, Theresa Koloszar, Oregon Natural Heritage Information Center

Institute for Natural Resources Publications

Extinction is a natural process. Today, however, plant and animal species are disappearing world-wide at an accelerated pace. Based on current trends, half of the species on earth will be extinct within the next 100 years. The major cause of this phenomenon is large-scale destruction of native habitats, which has increased since European settlement began in the mid 1800's - in Oregon and throughout the New World.

Once lost, a species can never be recovered, and there is no way of knowing how useful it may have been. We do know that human beings and many of their industries depend …

Fisheries Occasional Publication No. 6 - Anglers Guide To Assessing Reproductive Stage In Fish, Kim Smith, Mike Mackie, Department Of Fisheries Western Australia

Fisheries Occasional Publications

What is a gonad?

"Gonad" is a general term for a reproductive organ, and is used to describe both ovaries and testes. In male and female fish, the gonad is an elongated organ lying along the upper wall of the gut cavity (i.e. running immediately under the vertebral column). The gonad gonad has 2 lobes. Both lobes are attached to the body near the anus and extend forward inside the gut cavity.

As fish gonads ripen, they become larger, heavier and change colour. Immature and undeveloped adult gonads are very small, strap-like in shape, pinkish in colour and translucent (i.e. …

The Distribution Of Fox Squirrel (Sciurus Niger) Leaf Nests Within Forest Fragments In Central Indiana, Carmen M. Salsbury, Rebecca W. Dolan, Emily B. Pentzer

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

We examined the abundance and placement of leaf nests by fox squirrels in six urban woodlots in central Indiana ranging in size from 1.06 to 8.28 ha. Four of the woodlots were disturbed, or subject to extensive human impact, whereas the remaining two were nature preserves. We counted all leaf nests present in each woodlot and recorded nest tree characteristics. We then conducted a quantitative vegetation analysis of trees present and estimated percentages of herbaceous and shrub cover along a minimum of two 100 m transects at each site. Fox squirrels showed a preference to build nests in certain species …

Inheritance Of Trunk Banding In The Tetra (Gymnocorymbus Ternetzi Characidae), Jack Frankel

Department of Biology Faculty Publications

The tetra (Gymnocorymbus ternetzi) exhibits two phenotypes associated with trunk banding. Fish possess either a smoky-gray coloration with two prominent black vertical bands located directly behind the operculum (black tetra) or a lighter coloration and lack these bands (white skirt tetra). Segregation patterns observed from the progenies of 11 different crosses suggest that the inheritance of these phenotypes is controlled by two autosomal loci acting in a complementary fashion, with dominance at both loci required for the expression of the darker, banded phenotype.

Re-Assessment Of Carrying Capacities In The Ashburton River Catchment, Alan L. Payne, A M E Van Vreeswyk, K A. Leighton

Agriculture reports

Potential carrying capacities for land systems in the catchment of the Ashburton River were first estimated in 1983 as a result of a rangeland survey of the area undertaken during 1976, 1977 and 1978. Potential carrying capacity (termed capability capacity in the 1988 report) is a suggested sustainable level of use assuming that all pastures are in good range condition, the entire station is adequately watered for the effective management of livestock and seasonal conditions are average.

The Ashburton Land Conservation District Committee had previously requested a re-assessment of carrying capacities for Ashburton stations following the widespread establishment of buffel …

Renesting Decisions And Annual Fecundity Of Female Dickcissels (Spiza Americana) In Illinois, Jeffery W. Walk, Kevin Wentworth, Eric L. Kershner, Eric K. Bollinger, Richard E. Warner

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

T.-Renesting decisions and annual fecundity are crucial for interpreting other demographic information, yet are infrequently reported. We used radiotelemetry to monitor female Dickcissels (Spiza americana) throughout the 1999 and 2000 breeding seasons in south- eastern Illinois. Overall fecundity (regardless of whether females remained in the study area throughout the breeding season) was 0.61 ? 0.13 female fledglings per year. Of females that re- mained within the study area, 94% fledged young (1.25 ? 0.15 female fledglings per year). Most females (62%) that experienced nest failure emigrated from the study area (moved >10 km) in 2.8 ? 0.6 days; others (36%) …

Demographics And The Ecological Role Of The Channel Catfish (Ictalurus Punctatus) In Commercially Exploited And Unexploited Reaches Of The Wabash River With Implications For The Flathead Catfish (Pylodictis Olivaris), Robert Colombo

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

Catfish are a major component of the Wabash River fish assemblage and are commercially fished below river kilometer (Rkm) 500. From Rkm 322 through 499 the commercial fishery is subjected only to Indiana fishing regulations. In this reach of river, there is a 254-mm minimum total length limit on both sport and commercially harvested catfish. Below RM 322, the Wabash River forms the state boundary of Indiana and Illinois. In this region of river there are two different length limits on commercially harvested catfish with Indiana having a 254-mm length limit and Illinois having a 381-mm length limit. There is …