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Full-Text Articles in Ecology and Evolutionary Biology
Hide And Seek: An Exploration Of Antipredator And Predator Avoidance Mechanisms In Orthopodomyia Signifera In Response To Predation From Toxorhynchites Rutilus, Nathaniel Dahlberg
Hide And Seek: An Exploration Of Antipredator And Predator Avoidance Mechanisms In Orthopodomyia Signifera In Response To Predation From Toxorhynchites Rutilus, Nathaniel Dahlberg
Master's Theses
There have been many observations of larval Orthopodomyia signifera coexisting with the predator Toxorhynchites rutilus. There are three hypotheses that could explain how Or. signifera resists predation from Tx. rutilus. The first hypothesis states that larvae adapt behavioral changes that limit predation. The second hypothesis states thoracic setae serve as a physical defense that prevents Tx. rutilus from grasping Or. signifera. The third hypothesis states Or. signifera possess a chemical defense indicated by aposematic coloration. To test the first hypothesis larval Or. signifera were exposed to conspecific and heterospecific predation cues and their behavior was observed. Both cues …
Effects Of Mass Death On Community Structure And Ecosystem Function, Abby Kimpton Jones
Effects Of Mass Death On Community Structure And Ecosystem Function, Abby Kimpton Jones
Theses and Dissertations
Death and decomposition are natural processes that are generally well-understood. However, large events of death, such as mass mortality events (MMEs) are increasing in frequency and their impacts on the ecosystem are largely unknown. These events may have both bottom-up effects from increased nutrient input as well as top-down effects from loss of an ecological functional group by the affected population. Different functional MMEs may result in different top-down effects, creating cascading effects. In Chapter 1, I test the hypothesis that scavenger and herbivore simulated MMEs generate novel bottom-up and top-down effects. Results indicate that MMEs have a significant effect …
Regional-Scale Climate-Induced Variation In Ant Physiology And Morphology, Daniel E. Murphy
Regional-Scale Climate-Induced Variation In Ant Physiology And Morphology, Daniel E. Murphy
Biology Theses
The biology of ectotherms such as insects is influenced by ambient thermal conditions. Ants are a ubiquitous and ecologically important group of insects and are well-established as bioindicators of thermal conditions. Ants are sensitive to the thermal extremes that vary with latitude, elevation, and land use, and these thermal gradients influence their spatial and temporal distributions. As a result, ants have evolved physiological and morphological thermal adaptations in response to the thermal environment of their habitats. These adaptations include increased physiological and morphological tolerance for temperature extremes. In Western New York (WNY), temperatures are temporally and spatially heterogeneous, changing with …
Impact Of Native Natural Enemies On Populations Of The Invasive Winter Moth (Operophtera Brumata L) In The Northeast United States, Hannah J. Broadley
Impact Of Native Natural Enemies On Populations Of The Invasive Winter Moth (Operophtera Brumata L) In The Northeast United States, Hannah J. Broadley
Doctoral Dissertations
Invasive insects increasingly affect forested landscapes and have important ecological and economic impacts. My dissertation focuses on population dynamics of winter moth (Operophtera brumata L.), an invasive pest in the northeastern United States. Native to Europe, this is the species’ fourth accidental introduction to North America. The Elkinton lab established the biological control agent Cyzenis albicans across the range of winter moth in the northeastern U.S. Prior research indicates that C. albicans’ ability to control winter moth likely depends on additional mortality from native natural enemies. My dissertation research evaluates the identity and role of natural enemies already …
Comparative Pollen Foraging Of Africanized And European Honeybees In A Non-Agricultural Environment, Ruben Ruiz
Comparative Pollen Foraging Of Africanized And European Honeybees In A Non-Agricultural Environment, Ruben Ruiz
Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA
With the advent of the Africanized honeybee, ways to differentiate it from the European honeybee have been greatly sought in attempts to better understand the role of Africanized bees in pollination. Pollen collecting strategies for both honeybee subspecies have been explored in attempts to exploit their pollinating capabilities. This project examined pollen collected by honeybees from feral and managed European and Africanized colonies in a relatively isolated site. Paired European and Africanized honeybee colonies were used to obtain pollen foragers. Through acetolysis (series acidified Acetic Anhydride washings); the collected pollen from the individual foragers was treated and observed with light …