Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons^™

The Effect Of Triaenophorus Crassus On The Condition Of Coregonus Artedi, Alexander Surma

Journal of Earth and Life Science

Cisco Coregonus artedi is, historically, the largest commercial fishery in the Great Lakes. The species is also important to commercial and recreational fisheries in inland lakes. Tapeworm Triaenophorus crassus larvae embed themselves into the flesh of Ciscoes, rendering the fish unmarketable to humans. Triaenophorus crassus is common in inland waters such as Leech Lake and Cass Lake, MN. One Canadian researcher has suggested that the parasite negatively affects the growth and weight of Ciscoes. Poor condition can reduce fecundity, leading to lower recruitment rates. This would mean a detrimental impact on not only individual fish, but the health of …

Quantifying The Ecological Effects Of Salix Fragilis On Riparian Habitat In Kittitas County, Washington, Landon Shaffer

All Master's Theses

Invasive species threaten plant community structure and function globally. Riparian areas, the zone near streams where water influences vegetation, are especially sensitive to invasive species colonization, suffering large-scale shifts in community composition. Salix fragilis (crack willow) is a nonnative riparian species abundant in the lower elevation tributaries of central Washington. Some speculate whether this willow should be listed as invasive in Washington, despite a lack of regional supporting evidence. I studied riparian communities dominated by either S. fragilis or native species in the Kittitas Valley and measured biodiversity, quantified differences in solar attenuation, and compared leaf decomposition rates to learn …

The Effects Of Scour And Marginal Inundation On Trinity River Invertebrate Biomass And Density With Potential Implications For Juvenile Salmonid Food Resources, Benjamin King

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Regulated flow releases on the Trinity River in northern California have shifted the timing of high flows from winter to late spring and reduced their magnitude. The timing and extent of scour from high flow events and the timing and duration of marginal (bankside) habitat inundation has shifted as a result. Literature is sparse regarding the effects of these hydrologic alterations on Trinity River benthic macroinvertebrate (BMI) communities, an important food resource for juvenile salmonids. In the 2023 water year, a wet winter coupled with additional flow releases from Lewiston Dam provided the opportunity to analyze the impact of scour …

Trophic Interactions Of Sympatric Cyprinodontiform Fishes Inhabiting Louisiana Saltmarshes, Ryan Heines

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Resident saltmarsh nekton, namely Cyprinodontiform fishes, play key ecological roles in supporting terrestrial and aquatic food webs. These fishes are highly abundant across the saltmarsh landscape of coastal Louisiana and have evolved to tolerate the highly variable environmental conditions that are characteristic of these habitats. The objective of this research is to consider mechanisms enabling this diverse community of fishes to cooccur in the spatially limited saltmarsh habitats of coastal Louisiana. In Chapter 2, bulk stable isotope ratios of carbon (δ13C), sulfur (δ34S) and nitrogen (δ15N) were used to quantify the intra- and inter-specific resource use of six sympatric Cyprinodontiform …

Monitoring Faunal Responses To Biodegradable Oyster Reef Restoration Materials With Camera Traps, Tara L. Blanchard

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Restoration of the oyster reefs has become increasingly crucial due to great population declines around the globe. Intertidal oyster reefs provide essential foraging and loafing grounds to many faunal species, including several threatened/endangered wading bird species. Biodegradable oyster reef restoration materials have been introduced to avoid potential plastic pollution from traditional materials. Studies have shown success regarding oyster recruitment rates to these materials. However, their impacts on fauna using restored oyster reefs are unknown. This project aims to evaluate oyster reef restoration using biodegradable materials to increase faunal diversity, abundance, and foraging behaviors. Camera traps were deployed to observe fauna …

Examining Wrack In Mosquito Lagoon To Analyze Biodiversity And Seagrass Viability, Nicole Jerrell

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Seagrass restoration of Halodule wrightii, has become crucial as seagrass coverage in the Indian River Lagoon (IRL) declined by 58% between 2011 and 2019. To understand the abundance of seagrass fragments available for natural recruitment and restoration, we tracked the abundance of viable fragments found in the wrack in Mosquito Lagoon. Wrack is plant material, including seagrass fragments, mangrove propagules, and detritus. Seagrass fragments were considered viable if the fragment had an apical meristem present. Replicate samples were collected from 5 locations every two weeks, starting in September 2022 and ending in September 2023, and the samples were processed …

Interdisciplinary Learning: How Different Ways Of Thinking Can Fuel Passion And Expand Understanding., Allison Amy Peschek

Undergraduate Theses, Professional Papers, and Capstone Artifacts

This Capstone project was created to show the profound experience resulting from an extended range of interdisciplinary learning, and how different methods, when paired together, can enhance a learning experience. This was a personal project of exploration into those different angles, and primarily focused on avenues of logical and creating learning, respectively. These methods have been implemented by this author often in the past, but this capstone will explore this concept further, as there is a lot of potential in combining these different methods and biases in learning, to both further passion and understanding as a learner, but to also …

Colombia´S National Mountain Peatland Map: Peatland Distribution, Condition And Carbon Stocks, Patrick Nicolas Skillings-Neira

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

In this research, I explore the distribution, condition, and carbon stocks of peatlands in the Colombian Andes. High mountain peatlands in Colombia, usually found within the páramos, face significant ecological challenges. Although Law 1930 (2018) mandates sustainable páramo management, it does not prohibit peatland disturbance. Undisturbed peatlands act as long-term carbon sinks, but their degradation can convert them into greenhouse gas sources. The lack of comprehensive national peatland mapping hampers effective environmental management and policy formulation. I aim to create a national-scale peatland map, assess peatland distribution, quantify degraded pasture peatlands, and report preliminary soil carbon stocks. Additionally, I compared …

Movement Behavior And Metapopulation Connectivity Of Stream Salamanders In Response To Disturbance Events, Kathryn M. Greene

Theses and Dissertations--Biology

Metapopulations are shaped by the dispersal between populations in a landscape. Disturbance events can disrupt this connectivity resulting in local population extinction. For my dissertation, I used a combination of empirical and theoretical techniques to examine dispersal in response to disturbance and assessed it’s population-level consequences. My research used capture-mark-recapture sampling techniques to evaluate stream salamander movement in response to (1) a supraseasonal drought and (2) mountaintop-removal-mining (MTR) and valley-filling (VF) and (3) agent-based simulation modeling to evaluate population extinction risk in response to varying dispersal and mortality rates.

First, I evaluated the effects of a supraseasonal drought, a severe …

Steps Towards Operationalizing One Health Approaches, Kim M. Pepin, Keith M. Carlisle, Dean Anderson, Michael G. Baker, Richard B. Chipman, Jackie Benschop, Nigel P. French, Suzie Greenhalgh, Scott Mcdougall, Petra Muellner, Emil Murphy, Dion R. J. Neale, Michael J. Plank, David T. S. Hayman

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

One Health recognizes the health of humans, agriculture, wildlife, and the environment are interrelated. The concept has been embraced by international health and environmental authorities such as WHO, WOAH, FAO, and UNEP, but One Health approaches have been more practiced by researchers than national or international authorities. To identify priorities for operationalizing One Health beyond research contexts, we conducted 41 semi-structured interviews with professionals across One Health sectors (public health, environment, agriculture, wildlife) and institutional contexts, who focus on national-scale and international applications. We identify important challenges, solutions, and priorities for delivering the One Health agenda through government action. Participants …

Changing Fire Regimes And Nuanced Impacts On A Critically Imperiled Species, Jeremy T. Rockweit, Katie M. Dugger, Damon B. Lesmeister, Raymond J. Davis, Alan B. Franklin, J. Mark Higley

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Wildfire activity throughout western North America is increasing which can have important consequences for species persistence. Native species have evolved disturbance-adapted traits that confer resilience to natural disturbance provided disturbances operate within their historical range of variability. This resilience can erode as disturbance regimes change and begin operating outside this range. We assessed wildfire impacts during 1987–2018 on the northern spotted owl, an imperiled species with complex relationships with late and early seral forest in the Pacific Northwest, USA. We analyzed population- and individual-level wildfire impacts across the frequent-fire portion of the owl’s geographic range at two spatial scales and …

Heating Decoys To Mimic Thermal Signatures Of Live Animals For Drones, Landon R. Jones, Cerise Mensah, Jared S. Elmore, Kristine O. Evans, Morgan B. Pfeiffer, Brad F. Blackwell, Raymond B. Iglay

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Method name

Heating animal decoys to mimic thermal signatures for drones

Abstract

Thermal sensors mounted on drones (unoccupied aircraft systems) are popular and effective tools for monitoring cryptic animal species, although few studies have quantified sampling error of ani- mal counts from thermal images. Using decoys is one effective strategy to quantify bias and count accuracy; however, plastic decoys do not mimic thermal signatures of representative species. Our objective was to produce heat signatures in animal decoys to realistically match thermal images of live animals obtained from a drone-based sensor. We tested commercially available methods to heat plastic decoys of …

Competitive Behaviors Between Black Vultures (Coragyps Atratus) And Turkey Vultures (Cathartes Aura) During Scavenging / Comportamientos Competitivos Entre Coragyps Atratus Y Cathartes Aura Durante El Carroñeo, Amanda M. Herbert, Patrick A. Zollner, Landon R. Jones, Marian L. Wahl, Grant N. Burcham, Bryan M. Kluever, Lee A. Humberg, Brandon M. Quinby

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Abstract

Interference competition occurs when an individual prohibits another’s access to a resource through antagonistic interactions. Despite considerable research on scavenger interactions at carrion, the limited evidence for competitive interactions between black vultures (Coragyps atratus) and turkey vultures (Cathartes aura) relies upon the frequency of antagonistic interactions without considering other forms of competition. Using remote cameras, we recorded the duration of aggression, scavenging, and vigilance behaviors exhibited by individual black vultures and turkey vultures scavenging stillborn domestic cattle carcasses within flocks composed of one or both vulture species. We tested for differences of durations of each …

The Texas Feral Swine Eradication And Control Pilot Program, David R. Pipkin, Bruce R. Leland, Katherine Garwood, Linda Tschirhart-Hejl, Michael J. Bodenchuk, John M. Tomecek

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The United States Agriculture Improvement Act of 2018 (the 2018 Farm Bill) established the Feral Swine Eradication and Control Pilot Program. The program funded US$75M for 5 years, split evenly between the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) and the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS), both programs within the United States Department of Agriculture. The agencies solicited joint programs from states with high densities of feral swine in two phases. In Texas, NRCS and APHIS submitted three multi-county project areas along watersheds for Phase I funding and one eradication effort along with two crop protection projects in Phase II. …

Spatiotemporal Partitioning Of Two Invasive Ungulates In Guam [Abstract], Kelly J. Koriakin, Kurt C. Vercauteren, Nathan P. Snow, D. Buck Jolley

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Interspecific interactions are crucial in shaping ecosystem dynamics (Connell 1983, Tilman 1987, Barbosa and Castellanos 2005). Non-native ungulates have been introduced across the globe (Ferretti and Lovari 2014, Volery et al. 2021) and in environments where multiple invasives thrive, these co-occurring sympatric species may shift spatiotemporal patterns to minimize interspecific competition (Schoener 1974, Chesson 2000). Spatiotemporal shifts can lead to cascading effects to the native flora and fauna (Simberloff and Von Holle 1999). Given the potential negative impacts, understanding these interactions is vital for effective management of these ecosystems.

Two invasive ungulates, the wild pig (Sus scrofa) and …

Grazing Management For Livestock, Free-Roaming Horses And Burros, And Resilience, Sherman R. Swanson

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Grazing management avoids overgrazing by allocating forage for livestock on the basis of animal unit months and managing wild and free-roaming horses (Equus caballus) and burros (E. asinus) to achieve and maintain an appropriate management level (AML) for each herd. Riparian green forage and water attracts cattle (Bos taurus) and equids when upland forage is brown. Key species that focus management for resilience to weather variation, fire, and floods are preferred forage plants for cattle and horses. They include riparian stabilizers such as densely rooted sedges and deep-rooted perennial grasses in sagebrush (Artemisia …

Exploring The Consistency Of Flow Regimes Within And Among Ecoregions Of The Southeastern United States, Frank Paul Braun Iv

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Human manipulation of river systems has long been a known contributor to the loss of freshwater biodiversity. By accounting for environmental causes of hydrologic variation among rivers, we can better understand how ecoregion mediates flow regimes and forecast species that may be at risk. Presumably, natural variation associated with ecoregion boundaries exerts strong influence on flow regimes, and may mediate relationships between other features (e.g., land use, dam operations) and hydrology. However, such between-ecoregion variation is poorly investigated, particularly at fine spatial and temporal scales. I characterized 10 hydrologic metrics, representing the five key dimensions of the flow regime (magnitude, …

Impact Of Road Infrastructures On The Abundance Of Common Chameleon Populations, Pablo García-Quevedo, Francisco Díaz-Ruiz, Antonio Román Muñoz, Jesús Duarte, Adrián Martín-Taboada, José-María García-Carrasco, Miguel Ángel Farfán

Human–Wildlife Interactions

The common chameleon (Chamaeleo chamaeleon) is a threatened species in Spain. The loss and transformation of their traditional habitats are among the main causes of its decline. Linear infrastructures, such as roads and highways, cause direct habitat loss, roadkill, and fragmentation of populations by acting as an artificial barrier. In this study, we investigated the potential effect of 2 high-speed road infrastructures in southern Spain on local populations of common chameleons. A total of 34 grids of 1x1 km were sampled, differentiating between grids without road presence (n = 17) and grids with road presence (n …

Waterbird-Perceived Damage, Control Measures, And Economic Implications For Rice Production In The Brazilian Cerrado, Demetrio Luis Guadagnin, Alexandre Afonso Meyer, João Augusto Rossi Borges, Fernanda Maia Justo

Human–Wildlife Interactions

Waterbirds have the potential to inflict economic damage to crops. However, is rice (Oryza sativa) production in the Brazilian Cerrado significantly affected by waterbirds? This study aimed to assess the extent of waterbird damage on irrigated rice production in Central Brazil. We conducted surveys of waterbird populations in rice agroecosystem habitats throughout the cultivation cycle and analyzed the expenses associated with waterbird-induced yield losses and the control measures employed by farmers. The 2 most prevalent waterbird species observed were Dendrocygna viduatta and D. autumnalis, comprising 68.6% of all recorded waterbirds. These species were more frequently encountered and …

An Assessment Of Functional Characteristics In Macroinvertebrates And Fishes In The Lower Ogeechee River, Molly A. Mckeon

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

The southeastern United States is a hotspot for aquatic biodiversity; yet this region is also considered vulnerable to climate and land–use changes. The Ogeechee River is an unimpeded blackwater river in Georgia that drains into the Atlantic Ocean and a unique ecosystem due to the preservation of its natural state; Historically, research conducted in the river establishes a baseline for long-term ecological studies. The aim of this study is to compare aquatic macroinvertebrate and fish community composition data collected in 2014 to 2017 to a recently collected dataset from 2023 and document temporal changes. Water quality monitoring was performed throughout …

Dust Management At An Active Construction Area Affects Monarch Distribution, Amy W. O'Donnell, Jeffery D. Sullivan, Carl R. Callahan, Peter C. Mcgowan, Diann J. Prosser

Human–Wildlife Interactions

The North American population of monarch butterflies (Danaus plexippus) is experiencing dramatic declines, necessitating investigations into challenges facing this species that can be resolved through management actions. For instance, dust made airborne by heavy equipment driving along a dirt road can settle on roadside vegetation, resulting in reduced use by monarchs. Dust accumulation on areas where floral nectaries such as leaves, stems, and flowers may be present could reduce the ability of pollinators, such as monarchs, to access nectar from flowering plants needed during migration. One such challenge was observed on Poplar Island, an island restoration project located in …

Leaf To Canopy Functional Resilience: Plant Physiological And Carbon Cycling Stability Following Disturbances, Lisa T. Haber

Theses and Dissertations

Ecological disturbances impact core ecosystem functions, including production and biogeochemical cycling, by precipitating changes in biodiversity, physical environmental variables, vegetation structure, and functional trait distributions. As disturbance patterns intensify and abruptly transition to novel regimes under global change, future trajectories of ecosystem functions, including carbon (C) uptake and storage, are uncertain. A more complete understanding of the mechanisms underpinning ecosystem stability (or ability to return to baseline functioning) following disturbance is needed to forecast future C cycling.

Replicated ecosystem-scale disturbance experiments, particularly when coupled with modeling, are required to rigorously test hypothesized trajectories of ecosystem structural and functional change following …

Are Elaeagnus Umbellata Invasions Limited By Microbial Interactions?, Cody Anderson Leverette

Masters Theses

Mutualistic interactions with soil microbes are a key component of plant invasions. Mutualists such as ectomycorrhizal fungi and Rhizobia bacteria often limit invasive plant establishment and performance, but the role of nitrogen-fixing Frankia bacteria in invasions remains largely unexplored. In this study, I quantified the net effects of positive and negative plant-soil feedbacks, including Frankia nodulation, on invasive Elaeagnus umbellata (autumn olive; hereafter AO) seedling performance and traits at varying distances from focal shrubs using live soil and sterilized soil. The expectation was that seedling performance would decrease with further distance from shrubs as Frankia abundance decreased. Contrary to expectations, …

Benthic And Epibenthic Invertebrate Assemblages Associated With Estuarine Submerged Aquatic Vegetation Differ Between Native And Invasive Plants, Marissa Hall, Kathryn O'Shaughnessy, Bethany Kiley, Ashley Mcdonald, Taber Faurie, Zoey Hendrickson, Anna Reimer, Samantha Smith, Charles Martin

Gulf and Caribbean Research

Estuarine submerged aquatic vegetation (SAV) provides vital habitat for macroinvertebrate communities that support diverse food webs and subsequent ecosystem services. Invasive SAV, however, has the potential to alter estuarine food webs through competition with native SAV, resulting in different associated biological communities. In the Mobile-Tensaw Delta (Alabama, USA), the invasive Eurasian milfoil, Myriophyllum spicatum, is fast becoming the dominant SAV, out-competing native SAV such as wild celery, Vallisneria americana. This study investigated the above- and belowground macroinvertebrate assemblages associated with these SAV habitats. We found significantly different assemblages between the SAV, with V. americana supporting more even and …

Improving Stream Connectivity In South Dakota, Colton Rainier Curtis

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Stream connectivity is crucial for fish movement and genetic diversity in fragmented landscapes. Road-crossings often act as barriers, disrupting hydrology and isolating fish populations. The Southeast Aquatic Resources Partnership (SARP) has developed rapid road-crossing assessment protocols and tools to prioritize restoration projects. However, managers lack tools for planning, directing, and initiating roadcrossing assessments. Managers also require modeling approaches to effectively identify and monitor road-crossings across dynamic stream networks. Presented here is a case study offering a roadmap for effective implementation of collaborative road-crossing assessments and prioritization of remediation projects, alongside an exploration of predictive modeling approaches to identify problematic crossings …

Lycosidae Abundance And Diversity Across Lawn And Leaf Litter Substrate, Sage O. Lockett, Dan Albrecht-Mallinger

UROP Posters

Significant knowledge gaps exist in how land-cover impacts ground-hunting spider populations. To fill these gaps, this study investigates a common family of ground-hunting spiders, Lycosidae, to determine differences in their abundance and diversity in deciduous leaf litter and managed turfgrass (lawn). The study was conducted within a forested ecosystem at Virginia Commonwealth University's Rice Rivers Center in Charles City County, Virginia. I placed 10 belt transects (1m x 20m) on lawn substrate and 10 identical transects in deciduous forest leaf litter substrate. I performed repeated visual census via eyeshine and manual capture of up to three individuals per transect …

Ethyl-Iophenoxic Acid As A Serum Marker For Oral Baiting Of Tasmanian Devils, Ruth Pye, David Nichols, Sally A. Nofs, Amy T. Gilbert, Andrew S. Flies

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Oral baits containing vaccines, medicants or toxicants have been delivered to a broad range of wildlife species to protect against or treat disease, or suppress populations. Ethyl-Iophenoxic acid (Et-IPA) is used as a biomarker to determine oral bait consumption by wildlife species to assess and refine baiting strategies. Et-IPA is a persistent biomarker in many eutherian mammal species but not in the two marsupial species, swamp wallaby (Wallabia bicolor) and brushtail possum (Trichosurus vulpecula), tested to date. Et-IPA has not previously been evaluated in carnivorous marsupials. The Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii), the largest extant …

Landscape-Scale Epidemiological Dynamics Of Sars-Cov-2 In White-Tailed Deer, Joshua Hewitt, Grete Wilson-Henjum, Derek T. Collins, Timothy J. Linder, Julianna B. Lenoch, Jonathan D. Heale, Christopher A. Quintanal, Robert Pleszewski, Dillon S. Mcbride, Andrew S. Bowman, Jeffrey C. Chandler, Susan A. Shriner, Sarah N. Bevins, Dennis J. Kohler, Richard B. Chipman, Allen L. Gosser, David L. Bergman, Thomas J. Deliberto, Kim M. Pepin

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Understanding pathogen emergence in new host species is fundamental for developing prevention and response plans for human and animal health. We leveraged a large-scale surveillance dataset coordinated by United States Department of Agriculture, Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service and State Natural Resources Agencies to quantify the outbreak dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 in North American white-tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus; WTD) throughout its range in the United States. Local epidemics in WTD were well approximated by a single-outbreak peak followed by fade out. Outbreaks peaked early in the northeast and mid- Atlantic. Local effective reproduction ratios of SARS-CoV-2 were between …

Probabilistic Genetic Identification Of Wild Boar Hybridization To Support Control Of Invasive Wild Pigs (Sus Scrofa), Timothy J. Smyser, Peter Pfaffelhuber, Rachael M. Giglio, Matthew G. Desaix, Amy J. Davis, Courtney F. Bowden, Michael A. Tabak, Arianna Manunza, Valentin Adrian Bâlteanu, Marcel Amills, Laura Iacolina, Pamela Walker, Carl Lessard, Antoinette J. Piaggio

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

The rapid expansion of wild pigs (Sus scrofa) throughout the United States has been fueled by unlawful introductions, with invasive populations causing extensive crop losses, damaging native ecosystems, and serving as a reservoir for disease. Multiple states have passed laws prohibiting the possession or transport of wild pigs. However, genetic and phenotypic similarities between domestic pigs and invasive wild pigs—which overwhelmingly represent domestic pig and wild boar hybrids—pose a challenge for the enforcement of such regulations. We sought to exploit wild boar ancestry as a common attribute among the vast majority of invasive wild pigs as a means …

Efficacy Of X-Ray Phytosanitary Irradiation On The Infectivity And Reproduction Of Angiostrongylus Cantonensis In Experimentally Infected Rats, Susan I. Jarvi, Lisa M. Kaluna, Steven C. Hess, Lindsey Hamilton, Carmen Antaky, Robert T. Sugihara, Israel L. Leinbach, Yaeko Tagami, Argon Steel, Kathleen Howe, Steven Jacquier, Forrest Cookman, Jocelyn Diaz, John Jacob, Peter Follett

United States Department of Agriculture Wildlife Services: Staff Publications

Angiostrongylus cantonensis is a globally distributed nematode and the leading cause of eosinophilic meningitis in humans. As a global hotspot for this disease, Hawaii’s agricultural exports may be contributing to the spread of A. cantonensis. Phytosanitary irradiation doses of 150 or 400 Gy provide quarantine security against multiple insect pests. We evaluated the in vitro and in vivo effects of phytosanitary irradiation on infectious, third-stage A. cantonensis juveniles. In vitro experiments directly exposed juveniles to irradiation doses ranging from 200 to 1,000 Gy. Results showed low mortality and no dose response across all treatments 27 days post-irradiation. …