Biology Commons^™

Taxonomic Revision And Phylogenetic Analysis Of The Genus Elytroleptus (Dugés) (Coleoptera: Cerambycidae: Cerambycinae: Trachyderini), Traci Lee Grzymala

Biology ETDs

The longhorned beetle genus Elytroleptus (Dugés) (Cerambycidae:Cerambycinae: Trachyderini) is revised to include fifteen species. One new species is described: E. quadricostatus sp.n. (Grzymala & Miller). Three new synonymies are proposed: E. dichromaticus (Linsley, 1961) = E. divisus (LeConte, 1884) syn. n.; E. luteicollis (Skiles & Chemsak, 1982) = E. ignitus (LeConte, 1884) syn. n.; E. peninsularis (Hovore, 1988) = E. immaculipennis (Knull, 1935) syn. n. The genus is generally distributed throughout the southwestern United States, Mexico, and Central America (Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua) with one species extending the range to the north and southeastern United States. The genus is of …

The Effects Of Stream Discharge And Channelization On The Macroinvertebrate Community In A Semi-Arid Landscape, Thomas L. Kennedy

Biology ETDs

The Middle Rio Grande is the second largest watershed in the southwestern United States and is a vitally important component for the biodiversity in the region. Similar to many other rivers, the MRG is a temporally dynamic system that unfortunately, has been subjected to river regulation. As a result, the river has become channelised in many reaches disconnecting it from the surrounding floodplain. The effects of river regulation on the MRG and its surrounding riparian zone were largely unknown. I tested three main hypothesis with regards to the macroinvertebrates in the MRG: 1) Does flow variability structure the aquatic macroinvertebrate …

Controls On Microbial Community Structure In Thermal Environments: Exploring Bacterial Diversity And The Relative Influence Of Geochemistry And Geography, Kendra Renee Mitchell

Biology ETDs

Community wide molecular surveys have revealed incredible hidden phylogenetic and metabolic diversity in microbial habitats. We have conducted the first microbial survey of Yellowstone National Park thermal environments, sampling 103 communities from across the park and across the range of conditions found. Yellowstone is particularly suited for this type of research because of the large number and wide variety of thermal springs, which are naturally occurring chemostats enabling examination of the factors that control microbes and drive community structure. In addition to samples for molecular microbial analysis, we collected water for extensive geochemical analysis in order to begin to deduce …

Optimal (Plastic) Life Histories In Growing Versus Stable Populations, Eric Charnov

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Reproductive Allometry And The Size-Number Trade-Off For Lizards, Eric Charnov, Robin Warne

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

The yearly reproductive allocation shows a 0.75 allometry with adult size across lizard species.

Fish Growth: Bertalanffy K Is Proportional To Reproductive Effort, Eric Charnov

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

The Bertalanffy Growth Equation: Theory Of Paulys Auximetric Plots, Eric L. Charnov

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

No abstract provided.

Lifetime Reproductive Effort, Eric Charnov, Robin Warne, Melanie Moses

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

The concept of lifetime reproductive effort[LRE] is defined for arbitrary age structured populations. Optimal life history theory with metabolic production constraints is developed to predict the numeric value of LRE; This is tested with large data sets for mammals and lizards.

Current And Historical Aquatic Food Webs Of The Middle Rio Grande, Nm, Melanie S. Edwards

Biology ETDs

The Rio Grande has been identified as one of the most endangered rivers in the United States by American Rivers. Biologically, the consequences of the massive anthropogenic alterations of this river have been substantial. The overall aim of this study was to characterize the ecological implications of these alterations in the aquatic food web of the middle Rio Grande (MRG) of New Mexico. Our approach was to analyze the stable isotope composition of current food web components and of historical museum preserved fish specimens. After determining that we could use stable isotope analyses of historical museum preserved fish specimens (chapter …

Optimal Foraging: Some Theoretical Explorations, Eric Charnov, Gordon H. Orians

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

This book had its genesis in a rather disorganized and poorly conceived lecture on optimal foraging theory that one of us (GHO) gave to an advanced ecology class during the winter of 1971.The deficiencies in that treatment, combined with the obvious potential of an improved conceptualization and analysis of the problem, led to the formation of a small seminar on optimal foraging theory attended by Charles Fowler, Nolan Pearson and ourselves. This seminar, which extended over two academic quarters, produced the basic fine-grained foraging models and some hints about wider applications of the results. We both found ourselves independently stimulated …

Rdna Gene Region (18s-Its1-5.8s-Its2-28s) Of Biomphalaria Glabrata, Coen Adema

Biomphalaria Genome Initiative

No abstract provided.

Maternal Condition And Facultative Sex Ratios In Populations With Overlapping Generations., L.E. Schwanz, J.G. Bragg, Eric Charnov

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

Facultative investment in offspring sex is related to maternal condition in many organisms. In mammals, empirical support for condition-dependent sex allocation is equivocal, and there is some doubt as to theoretical expectations. Much theory has been developed to make predictions for condition-dependent sex ratios in populations with discrete generations. However, the extension of these predictions to populations with overlapping generations (OLGs; e.g., mammals) has been limited, leaving doubt as to the specific prediction for maternal-condition-dependent sex ratios in mammals. We develop a population genetics model that incorporates maternal effects on multiple offspring fitness components in a population with OLGs. Using …

The Offspring-Size/Clutch-Size Trade-Off In Mammals., Eric Charnov, S.K.M. Ernest

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

The Smith-Fretwell model for optimal offspring size assumes the existence of an inverse proportional relationship (i.e., trade-off) between the number of offspring and the amount of resources invested in an individual offspring; virtually all of the many models derived from theirs make the same trade-off assumption. Over the last 30 years it has become apparent that the predicted proportionality is often not observed when evaluated across species. We develop a general allometric approach to correct for size-related differences in the resources available for reproduction. Using data on mammals, we demonstrate that the predicted inverse proportional relationship between number of offspring …

A Dimensionless Invariant For Relative Size At Sex Change In Animals: Explanation And Implications, Andy Gardner, David Allsop, Eric Charnov, Stuart West

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

Recent comparative studies across sex-changing animals have found that the relative size and age at sex change are strikingly invariant. In particular, 91%-97% of the variation in size at sex change across species can be explained by the simple rule that individuals change sex when they reach 72% of their maximum body size. However, this degree of invariance is surprising and has proved controversial. In particular, it is not clear why this result should hold, given that there is considerable biological variation across species in factors that can influence the evolutionarily stable timing of sex change. Our overall aim here …

Reproductive Effort Is Inversely Proportional To Average Adult Life Span., Eric Charnov

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

Background: Forty years ago, G.C. Williams predicted that reproductive effort should be inversely related to the average adult life span across species. Aim: Use allometric life-history theory to refine that prediction. Result: Reproductive effort should be inversely proportional to average adult life span, a −1 scaling rule.

Mammal Life-History Evolution With Size-Dependent Mortality, Eric Charnov

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

Size dependence of mortality over the ontogeny is added to life-history optimization schemes for mammals

Similarity Of Mammalian Body Size Across The Taxonomic Hierarchy And Across Space And Time, Felisa A. Smith, James H. Brown, John P. Haskell, S. Kathleen Lyons, John Alroy, Eric L. Charnov, Tamar Dayan, Brian J. Enquist, S.K. Morgan Ernest, Elizabeth A. Hadly, David Jablonski, Kate E. Jones, Dawn M. Kaufman, Pablo A. Marquet, Brian A. Maurer, Karl J. Niklas, Warren P. Porter, Kaustuv Roy, Bruce Tiffney, Michael R. Willig

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

Although it is commonly assumed that closely related animals are similar in body size, the degree of similarity has not been examined across the taxonomic hierarchy. Moreover, little is known about the variation or consistency of body size patterns across geographic space or evolutionary time. Here, we draw from a data set of terrestrial, nonvolant mammals to quantify and compare patterns across the body size spectrum, the taxonomic hierarchy, continental space, and evolutionary time. We employ a variety of statistical techniques including "sib-sib" regression, phylogenetic autocorrelation, and nested ANOVA. We find an extremely high resemblance (heritability) of size among congeneric …

Effects Of Body Size And Temperature On Population Growth, Van M. Savage, James F. Gillooly, James H. Brown, Geoffrey B. West, Eric Charnov

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

For at least 200 years, since the time of Malthus, population growth has been recognized as providing a critical link between the performance of individual organisms and the ecology and evolution of species.We present a theory that shows how the intrinsic rate of exponential population growth, , and the carrying capacity, rmax K, depend on individual metabolic rate and resource supply rate. To do this, we construct equations for the metabolic rates of entire populations by summing over individuals, and then we combine these population-level equations with Malthusian growth. Thus, the theory makes explicit the relationship between rates of resource …

Full-Length Mitochondrial Genome Sequence Of Biomphalaria Glabrata, Coen Adema

Biomphalaria Genome Initiative

No abstract provided.

Size And Temperature In The Evolution Of Fish Life Histories, Eric Charnov, James Gillooly

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

Body size and temperature are the two most important variables affecting nearly all biological rates and times, especially individual growth or production rates. By favoring an optimal maturation age and reproductive allocation, natural selection links individual growth to the mortality schedule. A recent model for evolution of life histories for species with indeterminate growth, which includes most fish, successfully predicts the numeric values of two key dimensionless numbers and the allometry of the average reproductive allocation versus maturation size across species. Here we use this new model to predict the relationships of age-at-maturity, adult mortality and reproductive effort to environmental …

The Optimal Balance Between Growth Rate And Survival In Mammals, Eric Charnov

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

Evolutionary theory for life-history allometry in mammals is extended to include a trade-off between body-size growth rate and adult lifespan.

Construction Of The Bac Library For Biomphalaria Glabrata, Coen Adema

Biomphalaria Genome Initiative

No abstract provided.

The Galapagos Giant Tortoise (Geochelone Elephantopus) And The Spread Of Invasive Plants, Anne D. Schultz

Biology ETDs

Island ecosystems are commonly thought to be more vulnerable to the effects of invasive species than mainland systems. In recent decades, the number of exotic plants known to be present in the Galapagos archipelago has increased exponentially. Several of these plants are aggressive invaders that pose a threat to the biodiversity of the islands. Two of these plant species, Passiflora edulis Sims and Psidium guajava L. were introduced to Santa Cruz Island during the 20th century. Both pose a threat to the floristic diversity of the National Park land on Santa Cruz Island.

This paper explores the role played by …

Survey Of Whole Air Data From The Second Airborne Biomass Burning And Lightning Experiment Using Principal Component Analysis, Felisa A. Smith, Yunsoo Choi, Scott Elliott, Isobel J. Simpson, Donald R. Blake, Jonah J. Colman, Manvendra K. Dubey, Simone Meinardi, F. Sherwood Rowland, Tomoko Shirai

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

Hydrocarbon and halocarbon measurements collected during the second airborne Biomass Burning and Lightning Experiment (BIBLE-B) were subjected to a principal component analysis (PCA), to test the capability for identifying intercorrelated compounds within a large whole air data set. The BIBLE expeditions have sought to quantify and understand the products of burning, electrical discharge, and general atmospheric chemical processes during flights arrayed along the western edge of the Pacific. Principal component analysis was found to offer a compact method for identifying the major modes of composition encountered in the regional whole air data set. Transecting the continental monsoon, urban and industrial …

Bible A Whole-Air Sampling As A Window On Asian Biogeochemistry, Felisa A. Smith, Scott Elliott, Donald R. Blake, Nikola J. Blake, Manvendra D. Dubey, F. Sherwood Rowland, Barkley C. Sive

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

Asian trace gas and aerosol emissions into carbon, nitrogen, and other elemental cycles will figure prominently in near term Earth system evolution. Atmospheric hydrocarbon measurements resolve numerous chemical species and can be used to investigate sourcing for key geocarriers. A recent aircraft study of biomass burning and lightning (BIBLE A) explored the East Asian atmosphere and was unique in centering on the Indonesian archipelago. Samples of volatile organics taken over/between the islands of Japan, Saipan, Java, and Borneo are here examined as a guide to whole-air-based studies of future Asian biogeochemistry. The midlatitude onshore/offshore pulse and tropical convection strongly influence …

Genome Size Of Biomphalaria Glabrata, Coen Adema

Biomphalaria Genome Initiative

No abstract provided.

Thermal Time: Body Size, Food Quality And The 10c Rule, Eric Charnov, James Gillooly

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

Developmental rates of ectotherms (y) are often linearly related to temperature (Tc in C) within some biologically relevant range of temperatures as y = (1/S)(Tc - Tb), where Tb is the estimated temperature at zero development, and the thermal constant S is the development time multiplied by the temperature above Tb (i.e. degree days above Tb). Among similar species, it has been widely shown that S and Tb are negatively related across environments, that S is positively related to body size, and that Tb is independent of body size but increases with mean environmental temperature. Here we present a model …

Effects Of Size And Temperature On Developmental Time, James Gillooly, Eric Charnov, Geoffrey West, Van Savage, James Brown

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

Body size and temperature are the two most important variables affecting nearly all biological rates and times. The relationship of size and temperature to development is of particular interest, because during ontogeny size changes and temperature often varies. Here we derive a general model, based on first principles of allometry and biochemical kinetics, that predicts the time of ontogenetic development as a function of body mass and temperature. The model fits embryonic development times spanning a wide range of egg sizes and incubation temperatures for birds and aquatic ectotherms (fish, amphibians, aquatic insects and zooplankton). The model also describes nearly …

Shrimp Adjust Their Sex Ratio To Fluctuating Age Distributions, Eric Charnov, Robert Hannah

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

Long-term data sets that quantitatively confirm basic ecological theory are rare for field populations. Highly variable recruitment often causes wide temporal variation in population age distribution and basic theory for adaptive sex ratio often predicts sex ratio tracking' to match the fluctuating age distribution. Using sex-changing shrimp as a model system, we test this in a new data set of 20 years duration. The new data support the theory, despite intense fishery exploitation that itself has greatly altered the age distribution in recent years.

Reproductive Effort, Offspring Size And Benefit/Cost Ratios In The Classification Of Life Histories, Eric Charnov

Biology Faculty & Staff Publications

There have been many attempts to document links between reproductive allocation and factors such as adult body size and demography. This paper suggests that among closely related taxa, two dimensionless numbers, each a benefit—cost ratio summarizing reproductive timing, allocation and demography, are invariants and thus are useful to classify life histories. The two numbers are E/α and C·E, where E is average adult life span,α is age-at-first-reproduction and C is average mass (per adult) devoted to reproduction per unit of time, divided by the average adult body mass (m); C is usually called reproductive effort'. Since E−1 is the average …