Biology Commons^™

Life‐History Differences Across Latitude In Common Side‐Blotched Lizards (Uta Stansburiana), Geoffrey D. Smith, Peter A. Zani, Susannah S. French

Biology Faculty Publications

1. Life‐history strategies are known to shift with latitude in many species. While life‐history variation related to body size, reproductive investment, and behavior has been studied for years, another crucial life‐history component is the immune system, which can influence an animal's survival.
2. We measured selected life‐history traits in side‐blotched lizards in southern Utah and Oregon in the field for two consecutive years and conducted a common‐garden experiment in the laboratory to determine how organisms from different latitudes optimize either immunity or reproduction. We observed lizards from southern populations, which are known to be shorter‐lived, had lower immune function during reproduction when …

Wild Bee Diversity Increases With Local Fire Severity In A Fire‐Prone Landscape, Sara M. Galbraith, James H. Cane, Andrew R. Moldenke, James W. Rivers

All PIRU Publications

As wildfire activity increases in many regions of the world, it is imperative that we understand how key components of fire‐prone ecosystems respond to spatial variation in fire characteristics. Pollinators provide a foundation for ecological communities by assisting in the reproduction of native plants, yet our understanding of how pollinators such as wild bees respond to variation in fire severity is limited, particularly for forest ecosystems. Here, we took advantage of a natural experiment created by a large‐scale, mixed‐severity wildfire to provide the first assessment of how wild bee communities are shaped by fire severity in mixed‐conifer forest. We sampled …

The Effect Of Phylogenetic Uncertainty And Imputation On Edge Scores, K. Bodie Weedop, Arne Ø. Mooers, Caroline M. Tucker, William D. Pearse

Biology Faculty Publications

Faced with the challenge of saving as much diversity as possible given financial and time constraints, conservation biologists are increasingly prioritizing species on the basis of their overall contribution to evolutionary diversity. Metrics such as EDGE (Evolutionary Distinct and Globally Endangered) have been used to set such evolutionarily based conservation priorities for a number of taxa, such as mammals, birds, corals, amphibians, and sharks. Each application of EDGE has required some form of correction to account for species whose positions within the tree of life are unknown. Perhaps the most advanced of these corrections is phylogenetic imputation, but to date …

Consequences Of Intraspecific Variation In Seed Dispersal For Plant Demography, Communities, Evolution And Global Change, Rebecca S. Snell, Noelle G. Beckman, Evan Fricke, Bette A. Loiselle, Carolina S. Carvalho, Landon R. Jones, Nathanael I. Lichti, Nicky Lustenhouwer, Sebastian J. Schreiber, Christopher Strickland, Lauren L. Sullivan, Brittany R. Cavazos, Itamar Giladi, Alan Hastings, Kimberly M. Holbrook, Eelke Jongejans, Oleg Kogan, Flavia Montaño-Centellas, Javiera Rudolph, Haldre S. Rogers, Rafal Zwolak, Eugene W. Schupp

Biology Faculty Publications

As the single opportunity for plants to move, seed dispersal has an important impact on plant fitness, species distributions and patterns of biodiversity. However, models that predict dynamics such as risk of extinction, range shifts and biodiversity loss tend to rely on the mean value of parameters and rarely incorporate realistic dispersal mechanisms. By focusing on the mean population value, variation among individuals or variability caused by complex spatial and temporal dynamics is ignored. This calls for increased efforts to understand individual variation in dispersal and integrate it more explicitly into population and community models involving dispersal. However, the sources, …

Genbank 16s Rdna Sequences For Ca. Annandia Pinicola, Ca. Gillettellia Cooleyia, Ca. Hartigia Pinicola, Ca. Profftia Spp., Ca. Pseudomonas Adelgestsugas From Taiwan, And Ca. Vallotia Spp., Carol Von Dohlen, Usha Spaulding, Kistie B. Patch, Kathryn Weglarz, Robert G. Foottit, Nathan P. Havill, Gaelen R. Burke

Browse all Datasets

The attached .csv file contains accession number, definition, and GenBank URL for 28 rDNA sequences: MF077637–MF077640 and MF098761 (‘Ca. Annandia pinicola’), MF077633–MF077636 (‘Ca. Gillettellia cooleyia’), MF077641–MF077645 (‘Ca. Hartigia pinicola’), MF108835-MF108838 (‘Ca. Profftia spp.’), MF098762 (‘Ca. Pseudomonas adelgestsugas from Taiwan), MF063340- MF063348 (‘Ca. Vallotia spp.’).

Comparison Of Nest Defense Behaviors Of Goshawks (Accipiter Gentilis) From Finland And Montana, Marilyn Wright, Risto Tornberg, Dustin H. Ranglack, Nate Bickford

Biology Student Research

As human impacts on wildlife have become a topic of increasing interest, studies have focused on issues such as overexploitation and habitat loss. However, little research has examined potential anthropogenic impacts on animal behavior. Understanding the degree to which human interaction may alter natural animal behavior has become increasingly important in developing effective conservation strategies. We examined two populations of northern goshawks (Accipiter gentilis) in Montana and Finland. Goshawks in Finland were not protected until the late 1980s, and prior to this protection were routinely shot, as it was believed that shooting goshawks would keep grouse populations high. In the …

Breeding Record Of The Hooded Vulture Necrosyrtes Monachus (Timminek, 1823) At Emi Abumo Woro, Kogi State, Nigeria, K. L. Adang, D. Tanko, K. L. Saliu, Umarfarooq Abdulwahab

Watershed Sciences Student Research

The hooded vulture Necrosyrtes monachus is a critically endangered species and recently published evidence suggests that its population is experiencing an extremely rapid decline, owing to indiscriminate poisoning, trade for traditional medicine, hunting, persecution, electrocution, habitat loss and degradation. As a result of these threats, the species is gradually disappearing from its range and thus, the sighting of vultures or their nests is becoming very rare. This paper thus, presents a report on the sighting of the Hooded Vulture and its nest at Emi Abumo Woro Village, Kogi State, Nigeria. This is an evident and equally an indication that Emi …

Susceptibility Of Wild-Caught Lutzomyia Longipalpis (Diptera: Psychodidae) Sand Flies To Insecticide After An Extended Period Of Exposure In Western São Paulo, Brazil, Mikel A. González, Melissa J. Bell, Scott A. Bernhardt, Reginaldo P. Brazil, Erin Dilger, Orin Courtenay, James G. C. Hamilton

Biology Faculty Publications

Background

In Brazil, members of the sand fly species complex Lutzomyia longipalpis transmit Leishmania infantum, a protist parasite that causes visceral leishmaniasis. Male Lu. longipalpis produce a sex pheromone that is attractive to both females and males. During a cluster randomised trial, to determine the combined effect of synthetic sex-aggregation pheromone and insecticide on Le. infantum transmission Lu. longipalpis had been continuously exposed to insecticide for 30 months. The objective of this study was to determine the effect of continuous exposure to the insecticides used in the trial on the susceptibility of Lu. longipalpis population.

Methods

During the trial …

Lack Of Antinociceptive Cross-Tolerance With Co-Administration Of Morphine And Fentanyl Into The Periaqueductal Gray Of Male Sprague-Dawley Rats, Erin N. Bobeck, Shauna M. Schoo, Susan L. Ingram, Michael M. Morgan

Biology Faculty Publications

Tolerance to the antinociceptive effect of mu-opioid receptor (MOPr) agonists, such as morphine and fentanyl, greatly limits their effectiveness for long-term use to treat pain. Clinical studies have shown that combination therapy and opioid rotation can be used to enhance opioid-induced antinociception once tolerance has developed. The mechanism and brain regions involved in these processes are unknown. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the contribution of the ventrolateral periaqueductal gray (vlPAG) to antinociceptive tolerance and cross-tolerance between administration and co- administration of morphine and fentanyl. Tolerance was induced by pretreating rats with morphine or fentanyl or low-dose combination …

Survey Of Bird/Window Collisions At Utah State University-Brigham City, Spencer Smith

Research on Capitol Hill

When birds fly at full speed into the highly reflective glass windows of human structures, death is often the outcome. This research investigates the impact of architecture on bird population through a specific case study. Bird/window collisions claim from around 350 million to over 1 billion birds per year (Kahle, Flannery, & Dumbacher, 2016). Studies have shown that window surface area (Borden, Lockhart, Jones, & Lyons, 2011) can increase incidents of bird-window collisions. In 2015, Utah State University –Brigham City campus finished their new Classroom and Student Services building which features large windows and an interior tree that can be …

Silkworms With Spider Silklike Fibers Using Synthetic Silkworm Chow Containing Calcium Lignosulfonate, Carbon Nanotubes, And Graphene, Xiaoli Zhang, Ana Laura Licon, Thomas I. Harris, Paula F. Oliveira, Bailey J. Mcfarland, Blake E. Taurone, Brittney J. Walsh, Brianne E. Bell, Caleb T. Walker, Randolph V. Lewis, Justin A. Jones

Biology Faculty Publications

Silkworm silk has become increasingly relevant for material applications. However, the industry as a whole is retracting because of problems with mass production. One of the key problems is the inconsistent properties of the silk. A means by which to improve the silk material properties is through enhanced sericulture techniques. One possible technique is altering the feed of the silkworms to include single-wall carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) or graphene (GR). Recently published results have demonstrated substantial improvement in fiber mechanical properties. However, the effect of the surfactant used to incorporate those materials into the feed on the fiber mechanical properties in …

Draft Genome Assembly And Population Genetics Of An Agricultural Pollinator, The Solitary Alkali Bee (Halictidae: Nomia Melanderi), Karen M. Kapheim, Hailin Pan, Cai Li, Charles Blatti Ill, Brock A. Harpur, Panagiotis Ioannidis, Beryl M. Jones, Clement F. Kent, Livio Ruzzante, Laura Sloofman, Eckart Stolle, Robert M. Waterhouse, Amro Zayed, Guojie Zhang, William T. Wcislo

Biology Faculty Publications

Alkali bees (Nomia melanderi) are solitary relatives of the halictine bees, which have become an important model for the evolution of social behavior, but for which few solitary comparisons exist. These ground-nesting bees defend their developing offspring against pathogens and predators, and thus exhibit some of the key traits that preceded insect sociality. Alkali bees are also efficient native pollinators of alfalfa seed, which is a crop of major economic value in the United States. We sequenced, assembled, and annotated a high-quality draft genome of 299.6 Mbp for this species. Repetitive content makes up more than one-third of …

Congruent Phylogenetic Relationships Of Melaphidina Aphids (Aphididae: Eriosomatinae: Fordini) According To Nuclear And Mitochondrial Dna Data With Taxonomic Implications On Generic Limits, Zhumei Ren, Carol D. Von Dohlen, A. J. Harris, Rebecca B. Dikow, Xu Su, Jun Wen

Biology Faculty Publications

Melaphidina aphids (Rhus-gall aphids; Eriosomatinae: Fordini) comprise five genera from eastern Asia and one monotypic genus from eastern North America. Melaphidina are unique in feeding on plant species of Rhus subgenus Rhus (Anacardiaceae), on which they form galls during the summer. The phylogenetic relationships among some species of Melaphidina aphids remain controversial. In this study, we sought to resolve the backbone phylogeny of Melaphidina aphids by sampling 15 accessions representing all six genera, all species, and all subspecies except Meitanaphis microgallis using 20 gene regions: five nuclear genes as well as 13 protein-coding genes and two rRNA genes …

Reply To: “Global Conservation Of Phylogenetic Diversity Captures More Than Just Functional Diversity”, Florent Mazel, Matthew W. Pennell, Marc W. Cadotte, Sandra Diaz, Giulio Valentino Dalla Riva, Richard Grenyer, Fabien Leprieur, Arne O. Mooers, David Mouillot, Caroline M. Tucker, William D. Pearse

Ecology Center Publications

Academic biologists have long advocated for conserving phylogenetic diversity (PD), often (but not exclusively) on the basis that PD is a useful proxy for “feature diversity”, defined as the variety of forms and functions represented in set of organisms (see below for an extended discussion of this definition). In a recent paper, we assess the extent to which this proxy (which we coined the “phylogenetic gambit”) holds in three empirical datasets (terrestrial mammals, birds, and tropical marine fishes) when using functional traits and functional diversity (FD) to operationalize feature diversity. Owen et al. offer a criticism of our methods for …

Dacar Cas/Somali Red Aloe: A New Species Of Aloe (Asphodelaceae) From Somaliland, Mary E. Barkworth, Ahmed Ibrahim Awale, Faisal Jama Gelle

Biology Faculty Publications

A new species of Aloe (Asphodelaceae) is described from Somaliland. It differs from other species in forming large clumps and in having sap that is initially yellow but quickly turns bright red and then dark red or reddish-brown, paniculate red-flowered inflorescences and uniformly coloured leaves with red teeth. Its recognition raises the number of species known from the combined area of Somaliland and Somalia s.s. from 31 to 36. A map portraying species density of Aloe by country, as that genus is now interpreted, shows that Aloe has its highest density on islands in the Indian Ocean but that, within …

Employing Plant Functional Groups To Advance Seed Dispersal Ecology And Conservation, Clare Aslan, Noelle G. Beckman, Haldre S. Rogers, Judie Bronstein, Damaris Zurell, Florian Hartig, Katriona Shea, Liba Pejchar, Mike Neubert, John Poulsen, Janneke Hillerislambers, Maria Miriti, Bette Loiselle, Edu Effiom, Jenny Zambrano, Eugene W. Schupp, Et Al.

Biology Faculty Publications

Seed dispersal enables plants to reach hospitable germination sites and escape natural enemies. Understanding when and how much seed dispersal matters to plant fitness is critical for understanding plant population and community dynamics. At the same time, the complexity of factors that determine if a seed will be successfully dispersed and subsequently develop into a reproductive plant is daunting. Quantifying all factors that may influence seed dispersal effectiveness for any potential seed-vector relationship would require an unrealistically large amount of time, materials and financial resources. On the other hand, being able to make dispersal predictions is critical for predicting whether …

Biogeochemical Recuperation Of Lowland Tropical Forest During Succession, Benjamin W. Sullivan, Rachel L. Nifong, Megan K. Nasto, Silvia Alvarez-Clare, Camie M. Dencker, Fiona M. Soper, Kevin T. Shoemaker, F. Yoko Ishida, Joana Zaragoza-Castells, Eric A. Davidson, Cory C. Cleveland

Biology Faculty Publications

High rates of land conversion and land use change have vastly increased the proportion of secondary forest in the lowland tropics relative to mature forest. As secondary forests recover following abandonment, nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) must be present in sufficient quantities to sustain high rates of net primary production and to replenish the nutrients lost during land use prior to secondary forest establishment. Biogeochemical theory and results from individual studies suggest that N can recuperate during secondary forest recovery, especially relative to P. Here, we synthesized 23 metrics of N and P in soil and plants from 45 secondary …

Refernment: An R Package For Annotating Rna Editing In Plastid Genomes, Tanner A. Robison, Paul G. Wolf

Biology Faculty Publications

PREMISE OF THE STUDY: In the absence of cDNA, the annotation of RNA editing in plastomes must be done manually, representing a significant time cost to those studying the organellar genomes of ferns and hornworts.

METHODS AND RESULTS: We developed an R package to automatically annotate apparent nonsense mutations in plastid genomes. The software successfully annotates such sites and results in no false positives for data with no sequencing or assembly errors.

CONCLUSIONS: Compared to manual annotation, ReFernment offers greater speed and accuracy for annotating RNA editing sites. This software should be especially useful for researchers generating large numbers of …

Creative Citizen Science Illuminates Complex Ecological Responses To Climate Change, Abraham J. Miller-Rushing, Amanda S. Gallinat, Richard B. Primack

Biology Faculty Publications

Climate change is causing the timing of key behaviors (i.e., phenology) to shift differently across trophic levels and among some interacting organisms (e.g., plants and pollinators, predators and prey), suggesting that interactions among species are being disrupted (1, 2). Studying the phenology of interactions, however, is difficult, which has limited researchers’ ability to zero in on changes in specific interactions or on the consequences of mismatches. In PNAS, Hassall et al. (3) use a combination of citizen science techniques to investigate the effects of climate change on dozens of specific interactions. They focus on a Batesian mimicry complex involving stinging …

Capsaicin As A Tool For Repelling Southern Flying Squirrels From Red-Cockaded Woodpecker Cavities, Robert T. Meyer, James A. Cox

Human–Wildlife Interactions

The southern flying squirrel (Glaucomys volans) is an important kleptoparasite of cavities excavated by the imperiled red-cockaded woodpecker (Dryobates borealis). Flying squirrel usurpation of cavities may affect woodpecker productivity, but current efforts to manage flying squirrels are costly and time consuming. We assessed whether capsaicin could deter flying squirrel use of woodpecker cavities on a site in southwest Georgia, USA. Twenty-nine cavity tree clusters received 4 treatments: capsaicin, water, air, and a control (no treatment). Only capsaicin both removed more flying squirrels from the cavity immediately after its application and decreased the probability of a flying …

Did Predator Control Go To The Dogs? A 40-Year Retrospective, John M. Tomeček

Human–Wildlife Interactions

In 1980, Green and Woodruff published an article entitled, “Is Predator Control Going to the Dogs?” At that time, the use of Livestock Guardian Dogs (hereafter LGDs) was a relatively new wildlife damage management tool in North America. Although this tool passed the test of time in its point of origin, early North American adopters stepped into a brave new world with little to guide them. In the modern world, knowledge of methods and means of wildlife damage management exists in written texts, films, and other guides. For LGDs, however, such materials did not exist 40 years ago. Over the …

A Review Of Rat Lungworm Infection And Recent Data On Its Definitive Hosts In Hawaii, Chris N. Niebuhr, Susan I. Jarvi, Shane R. Siers

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Rat lungworm (Angiostrongylus cantonensis) is a zoonotic nematode that causes rat lungworm disease (angiostrongyliasis), a potentially debilitating form of meningitis, in humans worldwide. The definitive hosts for rat lungworm are primarily members of the genus Rattus, with gastropods as intermediate hosts. This parasite has emerged as an important public health concern in the United States, especially in Hawaii, where the number of human cases has increased in the last decade. Here we discuss the current knowledge of the rat lungworm, including information on the life cycle and host species, as well as updates on known infection levels. Three …

Hunter And Public Opinions Of A Columbian Black-Tailed Deer Population In A Pacific Northwest Island Landscape, Robert P. Wingard, Paul R. Krausman

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Management decisions are influenced by public acceptance for wildlife; thus, knowledge of public concerns and management preferences can be an advantage to natural resource decision makers. Wildlife managers with the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife are concerned that the Columbian black-tailed deer (Odocoileus hemionus columbianus; deer) population on Whidbey Island, Washington, USA, exceeds social carrying capacity (i.e., a publicly acceptable population). In summer 2014, we designed a self-administered mail questionnaire to assess opinions of residents and a phone survey to assess the opinions of Whidbey Island deer hunters about Columbian black-tailed deer. We hypothesized that residents would …

Application Strategy For An Anthraquinone-Based Repellent And The Protection Of Soybeans From Canada Goose Depredation, Scott J. Werner, Matthew Gottlob, Charles D. Dieter, Joshua D. Stafford

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Agricultural crops can sustain extensive damage caused by Canada geese (Branta canadensis) when these crops are planted near wetlands or brood-rearing sites. From 2000 to 2015, South Dakota Game, Fish and Parks spent >$5.6 million to manage damages caused by Canada geese to agricultural crops (primarily soybeans) in South Dakota, USA. For the purpose of developing a repellent application strategy for nonlethal goose damage management, we comparatively evaluated the width of anthraquinone applications (i.e., 9.4 L Flight Control^® Plus goose repellent/ha [active ingredient: 50% 9,10-anthraquinone] at 0–36 m versus 0–73 m perpendicular to the edge of wetlands …

Foraging Preferences Of Barnacle Geese On Endophytic Tall And Red Fescues, Tuuli-Marjaana Koski, Kari Saikkonen, Tero Klemola, Marjo Helander

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Many grasses (Poaceae) have symbiotic fungal endophytes, which affect livestock by producing unpalatable or harmful secondary compounds. Less is known about the repelling effects of fungal endophytes on avian grazers despite potential wildlife management implications. Herbivorous goose (Branta spp.) species may become a nuisance in recreational use areas via fecal littering. Planting these areas with grasses that avian grazers avoid may help mitigate this damage. In 2016, we studied the foraging preference of the barnacle geese (B. leucopsis) with endophytic (E+) or endophyte-free (E-) red fescue (Festuca rubra) and/or tall fescue (Schedonorus phoenix) in …

Wildlife Damage To Crops Adjacent To A Protected Area In Southeastern Mexico: Farmers’ Perceptions Versus Actual Impact, Gabriel Can-Hernández, Claudia Villanueva-García, Elías José Gordillo-Chávez, Coral Jazvel Pacheco-Figueroa, Elizabeth Pérez-Netzahual, Rodrigo García-Morales

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Human–wildlife conflicts occur when wildlife has an adverse effect on human activities (e.g., predation of livestock, crop raiding). These conflicts are increasing, particularly in areas surrounding natural protected areas, where villagers engage in subsistence agriculture. Crop damage may cause farmers to retaliate and harm wildlife species considered responsible for the damage. Among the factors that determine the intensity of the conflict are the frequency of the damage and the amount of biomass consumed relative to the perceptions, values, and cultural history of the farmers affected. To better understand the conflicts between farmers and wildlife, we compared farmer perceptions of wildlife …

Unclogging The Pipeline: Advancement To Full Professor In Academic Stem, Helga Van Miegroet, Christy Glass, Ronda R. Callister, Kimberly Sullivan

Ecology Center Publications

Purpose: Women remain underrepresented in academic STEM, especially at the highest ranks. While much attention has focused on early-career attrition, mid-career advancement is still largely understudied and undocumented. This paper analyzes gender differences in advancement to full professor within academic STEM at a mid-size public doctoral university in the western US, before and after the NSF-ADVANCE Program (2003-2007).

Methodology: Using faculty demographics and promotion data between 2008 and 2014, combined with faculty responses to two waves of a climate survey, the magnitude and longevity of the impact of ADVANCE on mid-career faculty advancement across gender is evaluated.

Findings: This study …

Modeling The Effect Of Post-Dispersal Seed Predation On Tropical Tree Species In Panama, Justin Tirrell

Fall Student Research Symposium 2018

Palm trees provide a unique opportunity to study what conditions optimize the probability that a seed will grow successfully. The seeds of palm trees, endocarps, are large and easy to locate. When they don't grow, predators leave marks on them that tell the story of their fate. The focus of my experiment is to determine how the current distribution pattern of parent palm trees in Panama Palm trees affects the the future distribution of seedlings. I have programmed a versatile model that takes the assumption that bruchid beetles are the sole predators acting on the seeds, and that these fall …

Priming Of Grasping Muscles When Viewing A Safety Handle Is Diminished With Age, David A.E. Bolton, Sarah E. Schwartz, Manhoud Mansour, Garrett Rydalch, Douglas W. Mcdannald

Kinesiology and Health Science Faculty Publications

Merely viewing objects within reachable space can activate motor cortical networks and potentiate movement. This holds potential value for smooth interaction with objects in our surroundings, and could offer an advantage for quickly generating targeted hand movements (e.g. grasping a support rail to maintain stability). The present study investigated if viewing a wall-mounted safety handle resulted in automatic activation of motor cortical networks, and if this effect changes with age. Twenty-five young adults (18–30 years) and seventeen older adults (65+ years) were included in this study. Single-pulse, transcranial magnetic stimulation was applied over the motor cortical hand representation of young …

Reducing Protected Lands In A Hotspot Of Bee Biodiversity: Bees Of Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument, Joseph S. Wilson, Matt Kelly, Olivia Messinger Carril

Biology Faculty Publications

Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument is a federally protected area found in central southern Utah. Designated in 1996 by President William J. Clinton, it was recently reduced in size by President Donald J. Trump in a proclamation that turned the one large monument into three smaller ones. A long-term, standardized study of the bees had been conducted from 2000–2003, revealing 660 species. The bee communities of the area are characterized by being spatially heterogeneous; most of the bees occur in isolated areas, with only a few being both abundant and widespread. Here we examine what affect the recent resizing of the …