Biology Commons^™

Transcendental Thermodynamics, Richard E. Morel, George Fleck

Kahn Institute Projects

Thermodynamics is often viewed as a narrow, introspective discipline, trapped by its origins in the 18th and 19th centuries. By dramatic contrast, we show that the Fourth Law of Thermodynamics provides explanations and interpretations of all natural events, extending across artificial boundaries of tradition- al academic disciplines. The Fourth Law of Thermodynamics states that far-from-equilibrium systems increase entropy at the maximum rate available to them. This broadly inclusive paradigm applies to systems from molecules, to organisms, to the biosphere. The Fourth Law is the Law of Evolution. All systems that communicate with their environment exhibit self-organization and self-optimization, enabling the …

Spatial Conservation Prioritization Of Kansas For Terrestrial Vertebrates, Megan R. Rohweder

Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice

Biological diversity is being threatened by the encroachment of humans, which limits the habitat available for conservation and strains resources allocated for conservation efforts. However conservation goals have to be achieved within these limitations. Conservation priorities can ensure that habitat and resources are used effectively and efficiently. I developed a conservation prioritization plan for the terrestrial vertebrates of Kansas. I used modeled distributions of every terrestrial vertebrate species found in Kansas to build three biodiversity indices; species richness, vulnerability, and endemicity. Kansas was divided into a grid of planning units, 34.5 km2. For each taxonomic group the planning units were …

Conserving Our Cultural Heritage: The Role Of Fungi In Biodeterioration, Hanna Szczepanowska, A. R. Cavaliere

Biology Faculty Publications

The objects of cultural heritage are composed of varied materials which can be affected by diverse microbial communities. The study of these complex and heterogeneous assemblies of materials and microorganisms require an inter- and multi-disciplinary approach. Development of a strategy towards prevention, mitigation of biodeterioration and removal of microorganisms, especially fungi begins with the understanding of the materials' fabric, assessment of causes behind the biodeterioration, and the context in which it occurs.

Three aspects of biodeterioration of cultural heritage are discussed: 1) the multitude of bio-agents' on cultural heritage materials, 2) fungal interaction with substrates, and 3) prevention and conservation …

Management In A Neotropical Show Cave: Planning For Invertebrates Conservation, Thais Giovannini Pellegrini, Rodrigo Lopes Ferreira

International Journal of Speleology

Lapa Nova is a dolomitic cave about 4.5 km long located in northwestern Minas Gerais state, Brazil. The cave experiences intense tourism, concentrated over a single period of the year, during the Feast of Our Lady of Lapa. In order to evaluate the impacts felt by the invertebrate community from this tourism, a new methodology was proposed. Four types of areas (intense visitation area, outlying visitation areas, moderate visitation areas and no-visitation areas) were sampled for invertebrates. There was one sampling prior and another on the last day of the 128^th feast, to evaluate the effects of visitation on …

The Biogeography Of Marbled Godwit (Limosa Fedoa) Populations In North America, Bridget E. Olson

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

The mission of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) is working with others to conserve, protect, and enhance fish, wildlife, plants, and their habitats for the continuing benefit of the American people. Toward fulfillment of that mission, a priority of the USFWS is conservation and management of migratory birds. Effective conservation actions to ensure the continued existence of a species on the landscape cannot be designed without first understanding basic life history characteristics of a species. It is common in the case of migratory birds, that we lack understanding of some of their elemental biological traits.

The Marbled Godwit, …

Breeding Ecology Of The Pileated Woodpecker, Brandon Lennon Noel

Student Theses and Dissertations

The purported rediscovery of the ivory-billed woodpecker (Campephilus principalis) in the Cache River National Wildlife Refuge in 2004 was a monumental moment in conservation biology. Although controversy surrounds this and other sightings of ivory-billed woodpeckers within bottomland hardwood forests, the rediscovery of a species thought to have gone extinct revitalized optimism focused on its conservation. What knowledge we possess about ivory-billed woodpeckers comes from research done by James Tanner in the 1930s and his data are pseudo-replicated from just a few pairs. Tanner suggested that sweetgum-oak forest cover types were better quality habitats for ivory-billed woodpeckers and other woodpecker species …

Avian Abundance And Diversity In Crep And Fescue Fields In The Summer And Winter Related To Vegetation Structure In The Upper Green River Watershed, Ky, Thomas A. Hulsey

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

Grassland bird populations have been undergoing dramatic declines in the last fifty years due to loss and degradation of habitat. The Conservation Reserve Enhancement Program (CREP) was initiated in the upper Green River Watershed of south-central Kentucky to improve water quality and provide wildlife habitat. Many studies have previously examined how similar programs in other states have contributed to grassland bird populations; in this study we are examining how the Kentucky CREP program is influencing bird populations, particularly grassland birds, and contributing to the conservation of these species. Bird and vegetation surveys were conducted during the summer of 2008 and …

Human-Wildlife Conflict On Small, Subsistence Farms In Kenya, Christopher B. Colonna

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

As human populations expand, wildlife suddenly competes with humans for resources and confrontation arises as a result. Rural Africa is typical of this problem. We surveyed local owners of small farms within the five villages surrounding Mount Kasigau in Southeast Kenya to quantify losses due to wildlife depredation on both subsistence and cash crops as well as to discover the patterns and variables influencing farmer-wildlife confrontations in the region. We found no statistically significant correlations among the value of damage per acre, the distance from the bush, or the distance to the nearest water source. We did find statistical significance …

Conservation Genetics And Distribution Of The Yazoo Darter (Etheostoma Raneyi), Kenneth Alan Sterling

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Yazoo Darter is a range-restricted endemic fish in north-central Mississippi. Because the limited and fragmented range of this species puts it at risk of extinction, the Yazoo Darter has been classified as vulnerable or sensitive by several agencies and conservation organizations. However, the actual conservation status of this species is uncertain. Information necessary for conservation management is relatively sparse and is scattered among published and unpublished sources, particularly collection records. I have consolidated all known collection records for this species into a standardized database which has not only yielded valuable information presented here, but will provide a resource for …

Nested Subsets, Scale, And The Distribution Of Abundance: A Macroecological Approach, Elita Baldridge

Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice

While the canonical nested subset pattern suggests that less species-rich areas will contain a proper subset of the species observed in richer areas, actual data sets do not show perfect nestedness; however, they show a pattern with more structure than would be expected by chance. Biological processes like immigration and extinction have traditionally been thought to produce the nested subset pattern. These processes acting indirectly could cause variation in the distribution and abundance of species that could produce nestedness at a variety of scales. Determining at what scales the pattern is observed might allow inference of processes that are more …

Habitat Variables, Mammal Interactions, And Recovery Approaches Important To A Rare, New Mexican Butterfly, Euphydryas Anicia Cloudcrofti (Lepidoptera: Nymphalidae), Julie Lincoln Mcintyre

Biology ETDs

This research investigated three study topics pertaining to the habitat and ecology of the Sacramento Mountains checkerspot butterfly (Euphydryas anicia cloudcrofti) with the goal of contributing to effective conservation for this rare species. In the first study, abiotic and biotic habitat variables were found to be different between occupied and unoccupied habitat. Connectivity, host plant resource concentration, and plant structural diversity corresponded with butterfly presence at the scales of landscape, meadow, host plant patch, and natal host plant. High habitat quality, low isolation, broad host plant patch area, and high host plant patch density were associated with occupied habitats. Adults …

A New Species Of Gekko (Squamata: Gekkonidae) From Tà Kóu Nature Reserve, Binh Thuan Province, Southern Vietnam, Van Tri Ngo, Tony Gamble

Biological Sciences Faculty Research and Publications

A new species of Gekko Laurenti is described from Ta Kou Mountain, an isolated granitic peak in Ta Kou Nature Reserve, Ham Thuan Nam district, Binh Thuan province, southern Vietnam. The species is distinguished from its congeners by its moderate size, with snout to vent length (SVL) reaching a maximum 107.0 mm; dorsal pattern of 5–8 white vertebral blotches between the nape and sacrum and 6–8 pairs of short white bars on the flanks; 11–14 precloacal pores in males; 14–17 longitudinal rows of smooth dorsal tubercles; and 18–20 broad lamellae beneath the fourth toe. Gekko takouensis sp. nov. is the …

Responses Of Bats To Forest Fragmentation In The Mississippi River Alluvial Valley, Arkansas, Usa, Rex E. Medlin Jr., Matthew B. Connior, Karen F. Gaines, Thomas S. Risch

Faculty Research & Creative Activity

Intense conversion of bottomland hardwood forests to rice and soybeans in the Mississippi River Valley of Arkansas has restricted the remaining forest to isolated fragments. Habitat fragmentation has proven to be detrimental to population sustainability of several species, and is the subject of intense study with often species and latitude specific responses. We compared both coarse land area classes and landscape fragmentation metrics from six 30 km × 30 km subsets centered on publicly owned management areas to bat captures obtained from a 2005 population study. Patch density was the strongest predictor of total captures (R 2 = 0.801, p …

Aldo Leopold’S Land Ethic And The Great Lakes: A Paradigm For Understanding The Morality Of Aquatic Invasive Species Management, M. Andrew Sanford, John Uglietta, Phd

Student Summer Scholars Manuscripts

Abstract: This essay explores what obligations we have to protect the Great lakes ecosystem from the threat of aquatic invasive species within the context of Aldo Leopold‟s seminal essay in environmental philosophy The Land Ethic. In this essay I argue that Leopold‟s land ethic provides a consistent and dynamic paradigm for how we perceive and protect the natural environment. The land ethic is summarized in what I call Leopold’s Edict which directs us to preserve the health and beauty of the natural environment. The land ethic implies that people interested in conservation must develop a firm understanding of what …

Heterosternuta Sulphuria (Coloptera: Dytiscidae) Occurence In The Sulphur Springs Headwater System And In Buffalo National River Tributaries (Arkansas, Usa): Current Distribution, Habitat Conditions, And Biomonitoring Framework, S.D. Longing, B.E. Haggard

Arkansas Water Resources Center Technical Reports

Heterosternuta sulphuria is an endemic aquatic species of concern in Arkansas, with a priority score of 80 out of 100 and a conservation rank of S1and G1. A need of the Arkansas Wildlife Action Plan (AWAP) was to obtain baseline information on distribution and population status of H. sulphuria. Here, we report new H. sulphuria records for 39 sites across 10 counties in the Ozark Highlands and Boston Mountain ecoregions and a determined habitat type of shallow margins and small bedrock pools of perennial streams and spring seeps. Few habitat patches were observed per site because detection was typically rapid …

Naive Prey Versus Nonnative Predators: A Role For Behavior In Endangered Species Conservation, Stephanie A. Kraft

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Fish are one of the most imperiled groups of vertebrates worldwide. Threats to fish fall into one of four general categories: physical habitat loss or degradation, chemical pollution, overfishing, and nonnative species introductions. Nonnative predatory fish often have a devastating impact on native prey, especially with endemic fish, whose restricted distribution and often limited evolutionary history with predators make them particularly susceptible to nonnative predators. One reason nonnative fish are often so efficient predators is that the native fish do not recognize the predator as a threat. Although many studies have examined the role of predator odor recognition, no fish …

Observations Of Flotsam Entrapment In The Northern Diamond-Backed Watersnake (Nerodia R. Rhombifer), Jason Ortega, Frederic Zaidan

School of Integrative Biological & Chemical Sciences (Formerly Dept. of Biology)

—Small areas of protected land may act as islands of suitable habitat surrounded by human development. Although these areas receive protection, we have observed one way that the surrounding human population can still endanger the welfare of its inhabitants. During our observations of the Northern Diamond-backed Watersnake (Nerodia r. rhombifer) in a semi-protected nature park surrounded by human development, we encountered 13 individuals entangled with flotsam. Of the 220 juvenile through adult snakes that we captured, 12 were encircled by various types of objects (e.g., finger cots; latex sheaths that cover a single digit, dental elastics, and plastic bottle neck …

Host Density And Human Activities Mediate Increased Parasite Prevalence And Richness In Primates Threatened By Habitat Loss And Fragmentation, David N. M. Mbora, Mark A. Mcpeek

Biology

1. Habitat loss and fragmentation are the principal causes of the loss of biological diversity. In addition, parasitic diseases are an emerging threat to many animals. Nevertheless, relatively few studies have tested how habitat loss and fragmentation influence the prevalence and richness of parasites in animals. 2. Several studies of nonhuman primates have shown that measures of human activity and forest fragmentation correlate with parasitism in primates. However, these studies have not tested for the ecological mechanism(s) by which human activities or forest fragmentation influence the prevalence and richness of parasites. 3. We tested the hypothesis that increased host density …

Biology And Conservation Of Horseshoe Crabs, John T. Tanacredi, Mark L. Bottom, David R. Smith

School of Marine and Environmental Sciences Faculty and Staff Publications and Presentations

We dedicate this book to Drs. Carl N. Shuster, Jr. and Koichi Sekiguchi for their life-long contributions to the biology and conservation of the magnificent horseshoe crab.

Cuscuta Jepsonii (Convolvulaceae): An Invasive Weed Or An Extinct Endemic?, Mihai Costea, Saša Stefanović

Biology Faculty Publications

Despite their ecological significance, parasitic plants face more conservation challenges than do autotrophic plants. This is especially true for the groups that include weedy or invasive species such as Cuscuta. While approximately half of the Cuscuta (dodders) species may require conservation measures, the genus as a whole is sometimes posted on governmental lists of noxious or quarantine weeds. Our study challenges this stereotype and uses the case of C. jepsonii (Jepson’s dodder) to illustrate the precarious biodiversity and conservation status faced by many dodder species. Until now, Jepson’s dodder has been known only from its type collection. Consequently, its …

Factors Affecting Predation Of Marine Turtle Eggs By Raccoons And Ghost Crabs On Canaveral National Seashore, Fl, Justin Brown

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Changes in abundance of interactive species can have cascading, community-wide effects (Soule et al. 2003). Raccoons (Procyon lotor) prey on a competitor for marine turtle eggs, the Atlantic ghost crab (Ocypode quadrata). Conservation of marine turtles often includes managing raccoons-the most obvious egg predator-which may have broader ecological effects, and unknown effects on egg predation. Neither the relationship between raccoons and ghost crab density nor the effects of ghost crab density on egg predation are well understood. I studied raccoon-ghost crab interactions and the effects of environmental variation on their activity during the 2007 marine turtle nesting season on Canaveral …

Propagation Of Endangered Thermopsis Turcica Tan, Vural & Küçüködük Using Conventional And In Vitro Techniques, Süleyman Cenkçi̇, Mehmet Temel, Mustafa Kargioğlu, Sergun Dayan

Turkish Journal of Biology

This report deals with the successful clonal propagation of endangered T. turcica using rhizome cuttings and epicotyl explants. Rhizome cuttings were treated with \alpha-naphthaleneacetic acid (NAA) or indole-3-butyric acid (IBA) before planting for vegetative multiplication. Rhizome cuttings pretreated with NAA (10 mg/L) were both rooted and sprouted (66.6 percent) after 100 days. Application of NAA induced callus and adventitious root formation in epicotyl explants and 6-benzyladenine (BA) induced production of microshoots. Low levels of NAA (0.5-1 \muM) together with BA promoted shoot initiation and development. The highest regeneration rate (86.6 percent), with a mean number of shoots (3.05) and a …

Effects Of Population Size And Density On Pollinator Visitation, Pollinator Behavior, And Pollen Tube Abundance In Lupinus Perennis, Christopher E. Bernhardt, Randall J. Mitchell, Helen J. Michaels

Biology Faculty Research

Both the number and the density of flowering plants in a population can be important determinants of pollinator abundance and behavior. We report the joint effects of population size and density on pollinator visitation and pollination success for Lupinus perennis (Fabaceae). Focusing on five pairs of populations, we matched one small population (125-800 flowering plants) with one distinctly larger population (1000-3000 flowering plants). In these pairs, population size did not affect pollinator communities or pollination success. All measures of pollination success increased significantly with density. Only bee behavior (number of flowers probed per inflorescence) exhibited a significant interaction of size …

Differential Effects Of Hunting On Pre-Dispersal Seed Predation And Primary And Secondary Seed Removal Of Two Neotropical Tree Species, Noelle G. Beckman, Helene C. Muller-Landau

Biology Faculty Publications

Many of the mammals undergoing drastic declines in tropical forests worldwide are important seed dispersers and seed predators, and thus changes in mammal communities due to hunting will affect plant recruitment. It has been hypothesized that larger-seeded species will suffer greater reductions in seed removal and thus greater increases in predispersal seed predation than smaller-seeded species. We compared primary and secondary seed removal and predispersal seed predation of two tree species between hunted and nonhunted sites in Central Panama. Seeds of Oenocarpus mapora (Arecaceae) are 16-times greater in size than those of Cordia bicolor (Boraginaceae). We quantified primary seed removal …

Management Of The Houtman Abrolhos System. A Draft Review 2007 - 2017, Department Of Fisheries (Western Australia) On Advice From The Abrolhos Islands Management Advisory Committee

Fisheries Management Papers

This review contains a brief description of the Abrolhos System and its special values. It also states the goal and principal objectives for management during the next ten years (2006-2016), along with updated strategies to achieve these objectives. The document succinctly outlines the direction for multiple use management of the Houtman Abrolhos Islands as determined by the Abrolhos Islands Management Advisory Committee (AIMAC). The Committee’s role is to advise the Minister for Fisheries on management of the Abrolhos Islands and the Abrolhos Islands Fish Habitat Protection Area.

Environmental Rearing Conditions Produce Forebrain Differences In Wild Chinook Salmon Oncorhynchus Tshawytscha, R. L. Kihslinger, Sean C. Lema, G. A. Nevitt

Biological Sciences

Recent studies suggest that hatchery-reared fish can have smaller brain-to-body size ratios than wild fish. It is unclear, however, whether these differences are due to artificial selection or instead reflect differences in rearing environment during development. Here we explore how rearing conditions influence the development of two forebrain structures, the olfactory bulb and the telencephalon, in juvenile Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) spawned from wild-caught adults. First, we compared the sizes of the olfactory bulb and telencephalon between salmon reared in a wild stream vs. a conventional hatchery. We next compared the sizes of forebrain structures between fish reared …

Testing An Ecophysiological Mechanism Of Morphological Plasticity In Pupfish And Its Relevance To Conservation Efforts For Endangered Devils Hole Pupfish, Sean C. Lema, Gabrielle A. Nevitt

Biological Sciences

Imperiled species that have been translocated or established in captivity can show rapid alterations in morphology and behavior, but the proximate mechanisms of such phenotypic changes are rarely known. Devils Hole pupfish (Cyprinodon diabolis) are endemic to a single desert pool and are characterized by a small body, large head and eyes, and lack of pelvic fins. To lessen the risk of extinction, additional populations of C. diabolis were established in artificial refuges. Yet, pupfish in these refuges rapidly shifted to a larger body, smaller head and eyes, and greater body depth. Here we examined how food availability …

Genetic Considerations For The Conservation And Management Of Yellowstone Cutthroat Trout (Oncorhynchus Clarkii Bouvieri) In Yellowstone National Park, David J. Janetski

Theses and Dissertations

A key component to conservation is an accurate understanding of genetic subdivision within a species. Despite their ecological and economic importance, relatively little is understood about the genetic structuring of Yellowstone cutthroat trout in Yellowstone National Park. Here, we use traditional (Fst, Rst, Nm, and AMOVA) and modern (Bayesian assignment tests, coalescent theory, and nested clade analysis) analytical approaches to describe the population genetic subdivision of cutthroat trout spawning populations in Yellowstone Lake and to identify genetically distinct population segments throughout Yellowstone National Park. Evidence for restricted gene flow between spawning populations within Yellowstone Lake was detected using nested clade …

A Switch From Polyandry To Serial Monogamy: Results From A Three Year Tagging Study Of Horseshoe Crabs In Long Island Sound, Jennifer Mattei Ph.D., Paul Goodell, Christine Depierro, Meghann Burke

Biology Faculty Publications

Part of an ongoing population study of the North American Horseshoe Crab, Limulus polyphemus, in Long Island Sound was completed during the 2003 – 2005 spawning seasons at Milford Point, in Milford, CT. Horseshoe crabs range more widely throughout Long Island Sound than expected and exhibit weak site fidelity. Animals originally tagged in Milford were found as far west as Stamford and as far east as Clinton, CT. during the 3 year study. Out of 522 female horseshoe crabs tagged in 2004 only 4 came back to spawn again at Milford Pt. in 2005. The sex ratios of tagged and …

Human Activity Mediates A Trophic Cascade Caused By Wolves, Mark Hebblewhite, Clifford A. White, Clifford G. Nietvelt, John A. Mckenzie, Tomas E. Hurd, John M. Fryxell, Suzanne E. Bayley, Paul C. Paquet

Biological Sciences Faculty Publications

Experimental evidence of trophic cascades initiated by large vertebrate predators is rare in terrestrial ecosystems. A serendipitous natural experiment provided an opportunity to test the trophic cascade hypothesis for wolves (Canis lupus) in Banff National Park, Canada. The first wolf pack recolonized the Bow Valley of Banff National Park in 1986. High human activity partially excluded wolves from one area of the Bow Valley (low-wolf area), whereas wolves made full use of an adjacent area (high-wolf area). We investigated the effects of differential wolf predation between these two areas on elk (Cervus elaphus) population density, adult …