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Behavior and Ethology Commons

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Full-Text Articles in Behavior and Ethology

Human-Bat Interactions In A Disease Emergence Hotspot: Implications For Human Health And Bat Conservation, Reilly Tempest Jackson Dec 2023

Human-Bat Interactions In A Disease Emergence Hotspot: Implications For Human Health And Bat Conservation, Reilly Tempest Jackson

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Bats are an ecologically important taxon that can host zoonotic pathogens. Globally, many bat species are synanthropic and live closely with humans, often roosting in man-made structures. The spatial overlap between humans and bats creates opportunities for human-bat contact, which can lead to human exposure to bat-borne pathogens and conflicts that cause bat mortality. Despite this risk, little is known about the drivers and characteristics of these human-bat interactions in buildings and work is needed to understand this aspect of the wildlife-urban interface. In Chapter I, I present a literature review that identifies the geographic and taxonomic trends in reported …


Parasites Versus Predation: The Role Of Chronic And Acute Parasite Exposure In Infection Risk And Anti-Predator Behavior, Delaney Farrell Aug 2023

Parasites Versus Predation: The Role Of Chronic And Acute Parasite Exposure In Infection Risk And Anti-Predator Behavior, Delaney Farrell

All HCAS Student Capstones, Theses, and Dissertations

Parasites with complex, multi-host lifecycles often engage in host behavior manipulation to increase transmission between successive hosts. In intermediate fish hosts, previous research has measured increased frequency of conspicuous behaviors, decreased swimming performance, and reduced antipredator behavior, which would collectively increase the fish’s risk of predation. In ecosystems where this type of parasite increased trophic transmission (PITT) occurs, parasites can play a substantial role in food webs. In this study, I investigate how chronic versus acute exposure to the trematode Euhaplorchis sp. A. affects the antipredator behavior of the Gulf killifish Fundulus grandis. Using a fully crossed design, I …


Effects Of 11-Kt And Prolactin On Gene Expression, Parental Care Behaviour And Immune Response In Male Bluegill Sunfish., Adriano A P Da Cunha Jun 2023

Effects Of 11-Kt And Prolactin On Gene Expression, Parental Care Behaviour And Immune Response In Male Bluegill Sunfish., Adriano A P Da Cunha

Electronic Thesis and Dissertation Repository

Parental care is very critical for reproduction in species that provide it. Hormones such as prolactin and androgens play a crucial role in parenting and reproductive behaviours. In mammals and birds, prolactin’s role in parental care is well-established; it stimulates milk production and stimulates attachment to newborns by its release in the preoptic area of the hypothalamus (POA), among other functions. Androgens, on the other hand, are commonly associated with male secondary sex characteristics, territoriality, and aggressiveness in mammals and birds. There are similar reports of prolactin and androgen effects in fish, but there are fewer studies. I investigated if …


Effects Of Maternal Disease History On Provisioning, Brooding, And Offspring Outcomes, Sakura Roberts May 2023

Effects Of Maternal Disease History On Provisioning, Brooding, And Offspring Outcomes, Sakura Roberts

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Disease within a population has the ability to shape the development, evolution, and general performance of a species. Pathogen exposure to hosts can influence their physiology and behavioral patterns to further shape offspring immunity. Parental conditions experienced by offspring during early development can benefit survival and fitness (e.g. increasing provisioning rates), as well as help deter against similar diseases experienced by parents. By testing if parental behavior changes can better prepare offspring outcomes for disease exposure, such as disease severity or duration of infection, we can see the beneficial impacts it has on disease dynamics and host-pathogen processes. Incubation temperature, …