Biology Commons^™

Dengue Vaccination Modulates The Dengue-Zika Viral System Via Immunogenic Cross-Talk, Noah Joseph Bernard Silva

Biology ETDs

A vaccine for dengue, a viral disease which is a major driver of morbidity and mortality in tropical and subtropical regions, has recently been approved by eleven countries. While vaccination has the potential to reduce disease burden, the approved vaccine faces challenges due to the interactions between the four serotypes of dengue virus (DENV1-4) and the potential interactions with Zika virus (ZIKV), a related flavivirus. In this study, we propose a mathematical model incorporating both DENV and ZIKV in order to investigate the effects of viral competition on dengue vaccine performance, the potential for change in incidence of Zika due …

Evaluating The Relationship Of Temperature And Growth Of A Larval Colorado River Catostomid, C. Latipinnis, Through Otolith Aging And Stable Isotopes (Δ18o), Adam Lawrence Barkalow

Biology ETDs

Knowledge of early life history strategies and ecological dynamics of larval fish growth and development is invaluable for effectively managing and conserving common and endangered fish species. Isotopic analysis of otoliths (bony structures of the inner ear) from larval Flannelmouth Suckers Catostomus latipinnis obtained from the Colorado River in Grand Canyon could greatly facilitate understanding of thermally-regulated growth rates, thermal preferences, and ontogenetic habitat use by these fishes. Colorado River water temperatures in the Grand Canyon are highly modified from projected historic water temperatures present before closure Glen Canyon Dam. Cold water as result of Glen Canyon dam and hypolimnetic …

Phylogeography And Population Dynamics Of North American Wolverines (Gulo Gulo Luscus) In Alaska And Western Canada, Dianna M. Krejsa

Biology ETDs

The circumboreal wolverine (Gulo gulo sp.) is ideal for studying responses to environmental perturbation in the North due to a history of persistence in glacial refugia and subsequent glacial recolonization. Wolverines are also excellent indicators of human influence on the environment due to their close association with remote areas and cold, snowy climes. Through the use of genetic tools (i.e., nuclear microsatellite loci and mitochondrial sequences), I examined population structure of wolverines in Alaska and western Canada to identify signatures of glacial refugia, bottlenecks, and distinctive populations, sex-biased dispersal, gene flow, and source and sink population dynamics. I identified genetic …

Final Report: Status Of The Arizona Toad (Anaxyrus Microscaphus) In New Mexico, Mason J. Ryan, Jacek Tomasz Giermakowski, Ian M. Latella, Howard L. Snell

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

This report covers the fourth consecutive year (2013-2016) of research on the population dynamics, ecology, and conservation status of the Arizona Toad (Anaxyrus microscaphus) in New Mexico. The year 2016 represented the rare opportunity to study the effects of El Niño, which typically brings above average precipitation to New Mexico, on the breeding behavior and ecology of the Arizona toad. We expected that the El Niño-driven above average precipitation during the winter of 2015 and spring of 2016 would result in increased detection of toads at breeding sites, especially those sites that were dry in 2013, 2014, and …

Natural History And Evolution Of An Elevational Generalist, The Cinereous Conebill (Conirostrum Cinereum), Andrea N. Chavez, Chandresekhar Natarajan, Jay F. Storz, Angela Fago, Christopher C. Witt

Biology ETDs

Elevational generalism is relatively rare in the tropical Andes Mountains, likely owing to the inherent requirements of enduring a high degree of climatic zonation and coping with hypoxic stress. The Cinereous Conebill (Conirostrum cinereum) appears to be an exception, and inhabits a continuous elevational distribution that spans over 4,500 m. Two subspecies, cinereum and fraseri, are restricted to high elevations and may be isolated, whereas the third and most widespread, littorale, occurs continuously along the western slope of the Andes from 0 to over 4,500 m. First, we aim to characterize the morphology, genetics, and climatic …

The Effects Of Atmospheric Pressure On Inter-Specific Competition And The Morphological And Hematological Characteristics Of Elevational Distributions Of Hummingbirds, Ariel Marie Gaffney

Biology ETDs

Species diversity in mountainous regions is strongly influenced elevational range limits of species, but it is generally not known which abiotic or biotic factors maintain these limits. Using Black-chinned and Broad-tailed Hummingbirds, species with offset but overlapping elevational ranges in the southwestern USA, we investigate the role barometric pressure plays in influencing these limits. In chapter one, we used a hypobaric chamber to test the effects of variable air pressures on interspecific competitive dominance. We sequenced the genes that encode the two adult isoforms of haemoglobin and measured the O₂-binding affinity of each isoform. In chapter two, we …

Precipitation Patterns And Fungal Community Succession In A Seasonally Dry Secondary Tropical Savanna, Sara R. López-Rodríguez

Biology ETDs

In the northwestern part of South America, seasonally dry forests have undergone extensive conversion to savannas to support ranching and agriculture. The combination of fire and vegetation removal employed for clearing, together with extensive agricultural practices, often lead to loss of soil fertility. This results in land that is no longer useful for agriculture and on which historical forests are unable to regenerate. This study examined the effects of common agricultural practices on soil fungal communities by simulating the effects of fire followed by plant removal. The goal was to determine whether common practices have rapid effects on soil communities, …

Immunology Of The Gray Short-Tailed Opossum During Pregnancy And Prenatal Development, Victoria L. Hansen

Biology ETDs

Vertebrate species that bear live young have overcome the evolutionary challenge of maintaining both a functional adaptive immune system and viviparous life cycle. In normal pregnancy, viviparous mothers are able sustain and nourish a fetus that is genetically half non-self without mounting an immunological attack. In 1953 Sir Peter Medawar brought attention to the “enigma of the fetal graft” and immunologists have been puzzling out the intricacies of fetal tolerance ever since. Although viviparity has evolved in all jawed vertebrate lineages aside from Aves, the vast majority of reproductive immunology research has been limited to eutherian mammals. There are insights …

Plant-Microbial Interactions Are Strong Determinants Of Plant Population And Community Dynamics, Yan-Yi Anny Chung 9485698

Biology ETDs

Plant-microbial interactions are ubiquitous and yet the consequences of these interactions on plant population and community dynamics are relatively unknown. Here, we used two different classes of plant-microbial interactions to examine their effects on key plant population and community characteristics such as commonness and rarity, competition and coexistence, as well as community stability.

Vertically-transmitted endophytes had stage-dependent effects on the population growth of two grass species Poa sylvestris and Poa alsodes, and generally increased host population growth rates. However, it was the intrinsic demographic advantage of P. sylvestris that allowed its population to grow at a much faster rate …

Pattern And Process In The Radiation Of Ground-Dwelling Squirrels, Bryan Stephen Mclean

Biology ETDs

What causes biological diversity to be unevenly apportioned across the Tree of Life? The pattern is widespread and well-characterized; but our understanding of processes underlying the taxonomic, phenotypic, and ecological disparities of clades remains incomplete. At least some of this disparity is due to clade-specific differences in the ability to respond to ecological opportunity, whereby access to, and exploitation of, different resources in ecological time drives evolutionary divergence and adaptive radiation. However, not all clades respond equivalently to ecological opportunity, and considerable heterogeneity therefore exists in diversification patterns across radiations.

This dissertation focuses on patterns and processes of diversification in …

Novel Indices To Quantify Freeze Tolerance In Amphibians, Jolene R. Rearick

Biology ETDs

We propose Freeze Endurance (F_end) as a new measure of the ability of amphibians to tolerate internal freezing, allowing integration of time and temperature to describe each freeze event. Use of freeze endurance as a descriptor allows direct comparison between individuals, populations, and species, and may be scaled by body size, or other characteristics, to determine if abilities to survive freezing are significantly different between groups. Thermal limit examinations have long suffered from lack of comparability between publications due to differing endpoints, measurements, equipment, and organism availability, despite the value of information yielded by such studies to understanding …

Novel Approaches To Exploring Silk Use Evolution In Spiders, Rachael Elaina Alfaro

Biology ETDs

Spider silk is enigmatic, and web structure, design, and adult morphology of the spinning apparatus of spiders once informed how systematists approached the spider phylogeny. The orb-web and adaptation of viscous silk was considered a key innovation leading to rapid diversification of spiders. However, the advent of molecular techniques including recent phylogenomics studies, overturned this major paradigm in spider evolution. Clades once considered monophyletic are no more. The orb-web is not a pinnacle of evolution, and the former sister group, using cribellate silk (loops of fibrils combed from a specialized silk plate on the abdomen), is now sister to the …

Where The Wild Things Are: Investigating Body Size As A Mechanism For Persistence, Meghan Anne Balk

Biology ETDs

Body size is a trait under selection. Genetic drift, climate, diet quality, and biotic interactions all select upon body size at the population, species, and community levels. These factors can be important in the context of rapidly changing climate. One of the ways an animal can persist in its environment is through morphological adaptation in situ. Here, I investigate four questions relating to the evolution of body size: (1) what is the limit in body size change in response to climatic change; (2) how does body size influence the thermal tolerances of animals; (3) how does body size evolve …

Introducing A Theory Of Neutrosophic Evolution: Degrees Of Evolution, Indeterminacy, And Involution, Florentin Smarandache

Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications

During the process of adaptation of a being (plant, animal, or human), to a new environment or conditions, the being partially evolves, partially devolves (degenerates), and partially is indeterminate i.e. neither evolving nor devolving, therefore unchanged (neutral), or the change is unclear, ambiguous, vague, as in neutrosophic logic. Thank to adaptation, one therefore has: evolution, involution, and indeterminacy (or neutrality), each one of these three neutrosophic components in some degree. The degrees of evolution/indeterminacy/involution are referred to both: the structure of the being (its body parts), and functionality of the being (functionality of each part, or inter-functionality of the parts …

Mitigating The Impacts Of Human Land-Use Change On Biodiversity: With A Focus On Large Migratory Herbivores, Kina Rebekah Murphy

Biology ETDs

Land-use change, commercial over-harvesting of species, and climate change are recognized as the main drivers of biodiversity loss. As a result, it is estimated that 30% of the planet’s biodiversity may go extinct by 2050. This dissertation focuses on how to mitigate the impacts of land-use change on biodiversity. I focus on large migratory herbivores because they are among the most heavily impacted by global change due to their large home range requirements. Habitat fragmentation, illegal hunting, and human-wildlife conflicts are among the biggest threats to large herbivores and result from land-use change. For this reason, my first chapter focuses …

Biogeography, Interspecific Introgression, And The Evolution Of Hemoglobin Genes In The High Andes: The Evolutionary History Of The South American Siskins (Spinus), Elizabeth Jane Beckman

Biology ETDs

Landscape features, interspecific introgression, and adaptation work in concert to shape the evolutionary history of a clade. Understanding the independent and cumulative consequences of these evolutionary processes on diversification is critical to revealing the origins of extant biodiversity. Studying these processes within rapid radiations, a significant contributor to global biodiversity, can provide powerful insight into the process of diversification. To assess how diversification is shaped by these evolutionary forces, I examined the biogeographic history, patterns of interspecific introgression and adaptation to high elevation in a recent, rapid radiation of finches, the South American siskins (Fringillidae: Spinus). I found that …

Plant-Biocrust Interactions Mediated By The Fungal Loop, Eva Dettweiler-Robinson

Biology ETDs

Plant-microbial interactions influence biogeochemical cycles. Plants and biological soil crusts are primary producers in drylands. Biocrusts include cyanobacteria, lichens, mosses, algae, fungi, bacteria, and archaea on the soil surface, some of which fix atmospheric nitrogen. I investigated controls on biocrust carbon fluxes and their contribution to ecosystem fluxes, the incorporation of plant-derived carbon into biocrusts, and the role of soil fungi in promoting performance of plants and biocrusts. Biocrusts responded to temperature and moisture differently by biome. Biocrusts in grasslands/shrublands contributed >25% of total summertime ecosystem respiration, but biocrusts in savannas/woodlands contributed < 1%. Biocrusts contributed < 2% to GPP in any biome. To augment their native photosynthesis, biocrusts may include 16% plant-derived carbon. Fungal connections improved plant and biocrust performance and reduced differences in the CN ratio between organisms compared to when connections were impeded. Investigation of interactions among biocrusts, plants, and fungi has improved understanding of resource cycling in drylands.

The Molecular Systematics And Phylogeography Of The Widespread North American Meadow Vole (Microtus Pennsylvanicus), Donavan J. Jackson

Biology ETDs

The climatic and environmental fluctuations of the Quaternary played an integral role in geographic distribution and genetic structure within many organisms today. Understanding how these historical biogeographic events may have partitioned genetic variation throughout the landscape is critical to forecasting the implications of modern climate change and how animals will respond to projected climate shifts. Through geographic and taxonomically comprehensive sampling, we used multi-locus and species delimitation analyses along with niche modeling methods to investigate the evolutionary and biogeographic history of the meadow vole, Microtus pennsylvanicus. The findings of this study highlight the vulnerability and importance that special consideration …

Shifts In The Relative Importance Of Competition And Mutualism For Communities And Ecosystems, Lukas Patrick Bell-Dereske

Biology ETDs

Plant species interact with at least one, likely many, microbial mutualist throughout their life cycles. These microbial mutualists can have strong effects on plant communities and ecosystem processes. Fungal endophytes within the genus Epichloë associate with ~20%–30% of grass species and have been shown to have strong effects on plant communities. Here I described the effect of Epichloë amarillans associated with the dominant grass species, Ammophila breviligulata, on nutrient cycling, below-ground microbial community, and compare the strength of its effects on plant communities to plant-plant competition.

In chapters one and two, I examine the effects of Epichloë on litter …

Montane Valley Grassland Plant Communities Are Highly Resistant To Wildfire, Martina M. Suazo

Biology ETDs

Understanding the ecological role of fire in fire-adapted plant communities is of great importance for restoration and preservation; however, limited research has been conducted on the response of upper elevation, C₃ grassland plant communities to wildfire. This study investigates the effects of the Las Conchas wildfire of 2011 on plant community structure and function in the montane valley grasslands of the Valles Caldera National Preserve, Jemez Mountains, New Mexico, USA. Long term monitoring of nine burned and seven unburned grassland sites was used to measure vegetation composition and dynamics both spatially and temporally relative to fire. Results show that …

Phylogenetics And Diversification Of Whirligig Beetles (Coleoptera, Gyrinidae), Grey Thomas Gustafson

Biology ETDs

Whirligig beetles are a family of aquatic beetles with an estimated 1,000 species distributed globally. Phylogenetic analysis incorporating molecular data has only recently been conducted on the family and many genera have never received modern taxonomic revision. The first chapter of the dissertation provides a taxonomic revision of the Southeast Asian whirligig beetle genus Porrorhynchus, finding the genus to contain 5 species, and no support for the numerous proposed subspecies. For the second chapter a phylogenetic analysis utilizing the most novel phylogenetic reconstructions methods incorporating the new Fossilized Birth-Death macroevolutionary model implemented in the program MrBayes 3.2.6 was conducted on …

Energetics Across Ecological Scales, John M. Grady

Biology ETDs

Energy is a common currency of ecological interactions. In this dissertation, I consider ecological energetics at different temporal, spatial and organizational scales. In my first chapter, I examine the energetics and thermoregulation of an enigmatic taxon: dinosaurs. From fossil evidence and assessment of living vertebrates I conclude that many non-avian dinosaurs were likely thermally intermediate, or 'mesothermic'. In my second chapter I detail the empirical evidence gathered to buttress my claim of dinosaur mesothermy. In my third chapter, I show how ecosystem rates of carbon flux, gross primary production and total biomass can be linked to individual body size. In …

Coevolving Histories Inside And Out: Phylogenetics, Comparative Parasitology, And Host Affinities Of Chipmunk Sucking Lice And Pinworms, Kayce C. Bell

Biology ETDs

Diversification of parasite species, in light of their host association, is an area ripe for testing hypotheses of evolution when one species requires another for survival. The 23 species of western North American chipmunks (genus Tamias) host two species of ectoparasitic sucking lice (Anoplura) and two species of endoparasitic pinworms (Nematoda). I used a phylogenetic approach to investigate the evolutionary histories of the parasites in light of the hosts and the landscape. In comparing the parasites, I found that the two pinworm species have similar diversification patterns, linked to hosts, but those processes occurred on different time scales. As another …

Altitudinal Gradients Do Not Predict Plant-Symbiont Responses To Experimental Warming, Melanie R. Kazenel

Biology ETDs

Fungal symbionts, ubiquitous inhabitants of above- and belowground plant tissues, can play important roles in increasing plant tolerance to abiotic and biotic stress. Disruption of plant-fungal interactions may therefore have important consequences for plant responses to climate change. Both altitudinal gradients and warming experiments can be useful tools for understanding responses of symbioses to climate shifts, but the degree to which altitudinal patterns will predict species responses to warming has received little attention for plant-symbiont interactions. This study combined surveys along replicated altitudinal gradients with a long-term warming experiment at the Rocky Mountain Biological Laboratory (RMBL) in Colorado, USA to …

Mammals Of The Greater Gila Region, Amanda K. Jones

Biology ETDs

The Greater Gila Region is an important area for study of mammals due to its unique physiographic history, leading to high elevational relief and many associated habitats. Due to the variety of habitats, the Gila is home to a very diverse assemblage of mammal fauna: 100 native species, 95 of which are extant in the region. This paper documents these species' current and historic distributions, taxonomy, habitat affinities, current phylogeographic studies, reproductive timing, and any other pertinent information. In addition, novel phylogeographic studies for four selected species were performed to fill in gaps in previous studies where Gila sampling was …

Experimental Drought And Soil Depth Interactively Influence Fungal Community Composition In Piñon-Juniper Woodland, Eric Olivas

Biology ETDs

Drought can flip ecosystems between states and in the process alter key systems such as plant biomass and carbon balance. Many drought-related studies have focused on plant responses or charismatic megafauna. Less work has addressed drought in the context of aboveground-belowground feedbacks. Impacts of drought are increasing, particularly in arid environments such as the southwestern United States. Major tree species of these regions, such as piñon pine, are adapted to a wetter and more predictable climate than the projected future climate. The effects of drought on piñon and its ectomycorrhizae have been studied observationally and in laboratories. Soil depth has …

A Multidimensional Investigation Of The Niche: Geographic Distributions, Body Size, And Interspecific Interactions Of Late Quaternary North American Canidae, Melissa Irene Pardi

Biology ETDs

A pressing conservation challenge is understanding how organisms will be impacted by climate change. From the paleontological record, we know organisms have options when facing change: they can do nothing, move, or adapt. These responses shape an organism's niche (a foundational concept in biology) that is abiotically constrained, but modified by biotic interactions. The greatest disturbances in recent North American geologic history is the human mediated extinction of megafauna ~11,700 years B.P. and climate change following the last glacial period. We used the fossil record to address ecological questions concerning conservationists; our focus was on Canidae and humans. Species distribution …

Patterns In Richness And Community Structure: From Bacteria To Apex Predators, Ara S. Winter

Biology ETDs

Patterns of community structure and richness provide context for studies from microbial ecology, global macroecology, languages, to Bayesian statistics. Diversity patterns for animals on land and their predictor variables are well studied. However, diversity patterns for bacterial communities and marine macroorganisms are not well studied or understood. Here I examine diversity patterns in caves, on the external surface of Chiroptera (bats), and in marine ecosystems. At the local to regional scale we investigate factors that drive bacterial community patterns in richness and composition in lava cave microbial mats and microbes on bats. Lastly, out of the cave and into the …

Retrospective Food Web Analysis Of Gila River Fishes Reveals Hydrologic Parameters Influence Non-Native Species Effects, Rosalee Anne Reese

Biology ETDs

The relatively pristine upper Gila River in New Mexico is a stronghold for endemic native fishes despite the presence of non-native fishes. In other, more severely human-impacted tributaries in the Colorado River basin, non-native fishes are a major factor in native species decline and extirpation. I tested whether presumed negative effects of non-natives on natives are compounded during drought using an approach based on Stable Isotope Analysis (SIA) and comparisons of resource use overlap during different flow conditions. Fish specimens were selected from natural history collections to represent a time series that encompassed wet and dry years, as well as …

2015 Final Report: Status Of The Arizona Toad (Anaxyrus Microscaphus) In New Mexico, Mason J. Ryan, Ian M. Latella, Jacek Tomasz Giermakowski, Howard L. Snell

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

In 2013, we initiated a field study to assess the status of the Arizona Toad (Anaxyrus microscaphus) in New Mexico. Herein we provide the results of three years (2013-2015) of range-wide population monitoring, a review of threat assessments, and several contributions to the basic ecology of the Arizona Toad in New Mexico. This work highlights the sensitivity of the species to abiotic factors and emphasizes the nature of annual population fluctuations in a variable environment. We provide analyses of environmental factors that influence toad reproductive behaviors, employ occupancy and detection modeling at breeding sites, and provide analyses of tadpole habitat …