Other Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons^™

Geographic Distribution: Hemidactylus Mabouia (Wood Slave). Usa: Florida: St. Lucie Co., Louis A. Somma

Papers in Herpetology

FLORIDA: ST. LUCIE County: Fort Pierce, 2100 Elizabeth Avenue (27.40840oN, 80 .34595OW). May 11, 2009. Ken Hibbard. Verified by Kenneth L. Krysko. Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida. UF 155444. First county record. One adult female; heavily infested with ectoparasitic pterygosomatid mites, collected from a porch screen of a residence at 2200 h. Three other Hemidactylus mabouia were observed at this same locality at 2000 h on May 13, 2009; they are common in sections of the Fort Pierce area. This invasive African species is currently the most widespread and rapidly spreading nonindigenous gecko in southern and central …

Letter From The Dean, Lalit Verma

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

No abstract provided.

Horseshoe Crab Spawning Survey Protocol, Jennifer Mattei

Biology Faculty Publications

The protocol lists supplies and clothing needed for the survey, as well as which data is to be collected and when and how it should be entered for the census of horseshoe crabs on the Recapture Data Sheet for 2009. Adopted from Cape Cod and Delaware Bay survey protocols.

Preliminary Analysis Of The Ecology And Geography Of The Asian Nuthatches (Aves: Sittidae), Shaily Menon, Zafar-Ul Islam, Jorge Soberon, A. Townsend Peterson

Peer Reviewed Publications

We explored distributions of Asian nuthatch species in ecological and geographic space using ecological niche modeling based on occurrence data associated with specimens and observations. Nuthatches represent a well-defined clade occurring throughout the Northern Hemisphere, but are most diverse in southern Asia where 15 of the 24 species occur and where the lineage is believed to have evolved. Species richness was focused in a narrow east-west band corresponding to the forested parts of the Himalayas with a maximum number of nine species predicted present in these foci. The distributional predictions have a mid-elevation focus with highest species diversity between 1,000 …

Terrapene Ornata (Ornate Box Turtle) Predation On Cliff Swallows, Mary Bomberger Brown, Charles R. Brown

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

During a 25-year study of Cliff Swallows (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota) in southwestern Nebraska, we observed Terrapene ornata prey, or attempt to prey, on swallows. On one occasion as large numbers of birds flushed and hit the net, the weight of the birds pulled the net down to ground level. One T. ornata, which was seen regularly at the colony, approached one adult Cliff Swallow that was very low in the net and killed it by biting and eating its head. After killing the bird, the turtle walked away carrying the head.

Lack Of Assortative Mating Between Incipient Species Of Stickleback From A Hybrid Zone, F. C. Jones, C. Brown, V. A. Braithwaite

Evolutionary Biology Collection

Both premating and postmating barriers to gene flow can contribute to reproductive isolation but the relative role of these factors, particularly in the early stages of speciation, is not well understood. Evidence suggests that factors contributing to assortative mating and, thus, the development and maintenance of divergent species, can be ecology-dependent. Here, we present results from a study of assortative mating between recently diverged anadromous and freshwater sticklebacks conducted in semi-natural conditions. Sympatric anadromous and freshwater sticklebacks were sampled from a contact zone and multiple male and female morphs were allowed to breed in replicate ponds. Mate choice was determined …

Mating Systems, Copulatory Organ Size, And Scaling Relationship In Mollies (Poecilia Spp.), Martha Divver, Eric T. Schultz

EEB Articles

Copulatory organs rapidly evolve and are subject to complex selective pressures affecting mating success. One feature of copulatory organs that is subject to such selective pressures is size. Benefits of longer organs may include greater signal effectiveness in courtship and longer ‘reach’ when attempting copulations with evasive females. Costs of longer organs may include impaired locomotion, increased energetic cost or reduced mechanical compatibility with female genitalia. The optimal size for a copulatory organ may vary with mating behavior. The objective of this study is to examine among-species variability in copulatory organ size, body size and the relationship between copulatory organ …

High Rate Of Recent Transposable Element–Induced Adaptation In Drosophila Melanogaster, Josefa Gonzalez, Kapa Lenkov, Mikhail Lipatov, J. Michael Macpherson, Dmitri A. Petrov

Biology, Chemistry, and Environmental Sciences Faculty Articles and Research

Although transposable elements (TEs) are known to be potent sources of mutation, their contribution to the generation of recent adaptive changes has never been systematically assessed. In this work, we conduct a genome-wide screen for adaptive TE insertions in Drosophila melanogaster that have taken place during or after the spread of this species out of Africa. We determine population frequencies of 902 of the 1,572 TEs in Release 3 of the D. melanogaster genome and identify a set of 13 putatively adaptive TEs. These 13 TEs increased in population frequency sharply after the spread out of Africa. We argue that …

Geographic Distribution: Sphaerodactylus Elegans Elegans (Ashy Gecko). Usa: Florida: Broward Co., Louis A. Somma, Kenneth L. Krysko

Papers in Herpetology

FLORIDA: BROWARD County: Pembroke Pines: 1031 NW 93rd Ave (26.0168833°N, 80.2695694°W; WGS84; elev. <1 >m). October 27, 2007. Collected by Lisa A. Charlton. Verified by F. Wayne King, Florida Museum of Natural History, University of Florida. One neonate captured in Jackson sticky trap set to sample insects in an alee tree (Blighia sapida). UF 152418. New county record. Originally turned in to Division of Plant Industry (DPI), Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Gainesville, Florida, on October 31, 2007; Entomology Log No. 8204. This nonindigenous gecko was flrst reported from Key West, Monroe County, Florida, more than 85 …

Speciation Within Bonneted Bats (Genus Eumops): The Complexity Of Morphological, Mitochondrial, And Nuclear Data Sets In Systematics, Molly M. Mcdonough, Loren K. Ammerman, Robert M. Timm, Hugh H. Genoways, Peter A. Larsen, Robert J. Baker

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

We phylogenetically analyze 705 base pairs of the cytochrome-b gene and 351 amplified fragment length polymorphism (AFLP) bands from populations of the karyotypically variable Wagner’s bonneted bat, Eumops glaucinus, and the Florida bonneted bat, Eumops floridanus (Chiroptera: Molossidae). Three karyotypes have been documented across the range of E. glaucinus, and we report that the karyotype from Cuba is morphologically similar to that from Jamaica. A 4th karyotype is present in specimens from western Ecuador. Three distinct lineages are present in both the cytochrome-b and AFLP trees. One lineage is restricted to western Ecuador and exhibits cytochrome-b …

Ecological Correlates Of Buggy Creek Virus Infection In Oeciacus Vicarius, Southwestern Nebraska, 2004, Amy T. Moore, Eric A. Edwards, Mary Bomberger Brown, Nicholas Komar, Charles R. Brown

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Buggy Creek virus (family Togaviridae, genus Alphavirus, BCRV) is an alphavirus within the western equine encephalitis virus complex whose primary vector is the swallow bug, Oeciacus vicarius Horvath (Hemiptera: Cimicidae), an ectoparasite of the colonially nesting cliff swallow, Petrochelidon pyrrhonota, that is also a frequent host for the virus.We investigated ecological correlates of BCRV infection in 100-bug pools at 14 different swallow colony sites in southwestern Nebraska from summer 2004, by using plaque assay on Vero cells to identify cytopathic virus and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction to identify noncytopathic viral RNA. We found 26.7% of swallow bug pools …

Stable Isotopic Niche Predicts Fitness Of Prey In A Wolf–Deer System, C. T. Darimont, P. C. Paquet, T. E. Reimchen

Evolutionary Biology Collection

Interindividual variation in niche presents a potentially central object on which natural selection can act. This may have important evolutionary implications because habitat use governs a suite of selective forces encountered by foragers. In a free‐living native black‐tailed deer, Odocoileus hemionus, population from coastal British Columbia, we used stable isotope analysis to identify individual variation in foraging niche and investigated its relationship to fitness. Using an intragenerational comparison of surviving and nonsurviving O. hemionus over 2 years of predation by wolves, Canis lupus, we detected resource‐specific fitness. Individuals with isotopic signatures that suggested they foraged primarily in cedar ( …

Geographic Distribution: Ramphotyphlops Braminus (Brahminy Blindsnake). Usa: Florida: Alachua Co., Louis A. Somma

Papers in Herpetology

One adult within a temiite colony, beneath rock. UF 151211; additional specimens (UF 151212-14) were also found. All specimens were collected between 1200-1240 h at the Division of Plant Industry (DPI), Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services. In 2006, another adult Ramphotyphlops braminus was collected by an employee at this site, near a greenhouse, and was kept in captivity until it escaped. Rhamphotyphlops is occasionally encountered by employees of DPI and it may be expanding its range, as there is one specimen (UF 147001) collected from the University of Florida campus (Powell Hall) adjacent to the DPI site (29°38'7.9080"N, …

Geographic Distribution: Ramphotyphlops Braminus (Brahminy Blindsnake). Usa: Florida: Volusia Co, Louis A. Somma, Paul E. Skelley

Papers in Herpetology

RAMPHOTYPHLOPS BRAMINUS (Brahminy Blindsnake). USA: FLORIDA: VOLUSIA Co.: New Smyrna Beach. 23Septernber 2006. Collected by Stacy Simmons. Verified by Kenneth L. Krysko, Florida Museum ofN atural History, University of Florida. One individual found on floor of residence. UF 151313. First county record. Originally turned in to Division of Plant Industry (DPI) , Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, Gainesville, Florida, as a "worm for ID" on 27 September 2006; Entomology Log No. 6879. It is not clear if this single specimen indicates an established breeding colony in this county. However, this invasive, parthenogenic exotic is established in other Florida …

Reflections On Wallace, Charles H. Smith

DLPS Faculty Publications

An unpublished paper has recently come to light, which shows that even at an early age, Alfred Russel Wallace was bold enough to approach the scientific establishment with his ideas.

Hyla Squirella (Squirrel Treefrog): Refugia., Louis A. Somma, David Serrano

Papers in Herpetology

HYLA SQUiREUA (Squirrel Treefrog). REFUGIA. Entomologists commonly use trap-nests to monitor cavity-nesting Hymenoptera. These trap-nests consist of 5 x 10 cm pine timber cut into 12-cm lengths. Five lengths are then stacked and strapped together. Each pIece of timber is predrilled in each side to have either a 3.2, 4.8, 6.4, 7.9, or 12.7 Iiundiameterhole, 8 cmindepth. Thus, each trap-nest consisted of five pieces of wood containing 2 holes of each diameter. They are suspended with wire from tree trunks and branches. We set these wooden traps (N = 10) at Devil's Millhopper Geological State Park, Gainesville, Alachua Co., Florida, …

Results Of The Alcoa Foundation-Suriname Expeditions. Xiv. Mammals Of Brownsberg Nature Park, Suriname, Burton K. Lim, Mark D. Engstrom, Hugh H. Genoways, François M. Catzeflis, Kelly A. Fitzgerald, Sandra L. Peters, Marijem Djosetro, Sandra Brandon, Sutrisno Mitro

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

An inventory of mammals in the vicinity of Brownsberg Nature Park, Suriname, incorporated a number of different sampling methods including examining museum voucher specimens, an animal-rescue operation, transect surveys, camera photo-traps, and interviews with local inhabitants. We document a total of 125 mammal species present in the Park. These include ten opossums, five pilosans, four armadillos, 58 bats, eight monkeys, 13 carnivores, one tapir, four artiodactyls, and 22 rodents. Nine of these species are reported for the first time from Suriname: one mouse opossum (Marmosops pinheiroi); one naked-backed moustached bat (Pteronotus gymnonotus); four fruit-eating bats ( …

Cortical Complexity In Cetacean Brains, Patrick R. Hof, Rebecca Chanis, Lori Marino

Veterinary Science and Medicine Collection

Cetaceans (dolphins, whales, and porpoises) have a long, dramatically divergent evolutionary history compared with terrestrial mammals. Throughout their 55–60 million years of evolution, cetaceans acquired a compelling set of characteristics that include echolocation ability (in odontocetes), complex auditory and communicative capacities, and complex social organization. Moreover, although cetaceans have not shared a common ancestor with primates for over 90 million years, they possess a set of cognitive attributes that are strikingly convergent with those of many primates, including great apes and humans. In contrast, cetaceans have evolved a highly unusual combination of neurobiological features different from that of primates. As …

Bats Of Jamaica, Hugh H. Genoways, John W. Bickham, Robert J. Baker, Carleton J. Phillips

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

The modern history of Jamaica is entwined with European exploration of the New World beginning with the landing of Columbus at Discovery Bay on May 4, 1494, during his second voyage to the Americas. Since that time the word Jamaica has conjured thoughts of tropical beaches, trade winds, pleasant tropical nights, Spaniards, British navy, Empire, sugar, rum, plantations, slavery, revolt, maroons, pirates, Port Royal, disasters, hurricanes, and in more recent years independence, tourism, Reggae, and welcoming and happy residents. Our knowledge of Jamaican natural history begins with Browne (1789). He and other early naturalists displayed a broad interest in plants …

Big Brains Do Matter In New Environments, Lori Marino

Evolutionary Biology Collection

No abstract provided.

Mammals Of The Cosigüina Peninsula Of Nicaragua, Hugh H. Genoways, Robert M. Timm

University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers

Nicaragua’s Cosigüina Peninsula, located at the northwestern tip of the country, is one of the most poorly studied biotic regions in Central America. The peninsula has been occupied for millennia because the climate of the region supported human habitation and because of its strategic position along the rich Pacific coast. The combination of long-term occupancy by humans and the cataclysmic eruptions of Volcán Cosigüina have produced a heavily impacted landscape. During the 1960s, the University of Kansas conducted multiyear field surveys of the terrestrial mammals on the peninsula and the adjacent mainland to quantify species diversity, relationships, abundances, habitat use, …

Bearing The Costs Of Human-Wildlife Conflict: The Challenges Of Compensation Schemes, Philip J. Nyhus, Steve A. Osofsky, Paul Ferraro, H Fischer, Francine Madden

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Lack Of Brown-Headed Cowbird Nest Parasitism In A Short Grass Region, Stephen L. Winter, Jack F. Cully Jr.

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

While conducting field work in Morton County, southwestern Kansas and Baca County, southeastern Colorado, during the period 27 May to 2 July 1997, we found 36 nests of seven bird species. Nests were not searched for systematically, but were found coincidentally as data were collected along transects during research investigating the breeding bird and plant communities of black-tailed prairie dog (Cynomys ludovicianus) colonies and noncolonized shortgrass prairie (Winter 1999).

Types Of Areas And The Origin Of Black Flies Fauna In Mongolia (Diptera: Simuliidae), Josef Halgoš

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

The survey of Mongolian Black Flies species (Diptera: Simuliidae) is given in the presented work. The classification based on Emelyanov (1974) and Gorodkov (1984) appeared to be as most advantageous one. Black Flies species found on the Mongolian territory up to now were classified according to the character of their distribution among 5 groups: Holoarctic species (7 species), Eurasian (15), Eastern Palaearctic (20), Turanian-Mediterranean (7), Mongolian endemic species (8). Individual groups are divided according to the type of area into smaller subgroups. The zoogeographical analysis has shown big similarity with Black Flies zoogeography in Siberia and Far East (in percentage …

Reproductive Ecology Of Two Common Woody Species, Juniperus Sabina And Artemisia Santolinifolia, In Mountain Steppes Of Southern Mongolia, Katrin Ronnenberg

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

The present study describes the reproductive ecology of the prostrate shrub Juniperus sabina and the dwarf shrub Artemisia santolinifolia in dry mountain steppes of southern Mongolia. Whereas stands of the juniper are located at the drought limit of the genus’ distributional range, the genus Artemisia is typical of central Asian drylands. Both species produce large numbers of reproductive organs. For Juniperus sabina, however, only 2.5% of the morphologically intact seeds were found to be viable. Correspondingly, neither seedlings nor saplings were found in the field, and recruitment by reseeding happens at most rarely under the present climatic conditions.

Instead, …

Quantitative Investigations On Bird Communities In Different Habitats In The Orkhon-Selenge-Valley In Northern Mongolia, Tobias Stenzel, Michael Stubbe, Ravčigijn Samjaa, Sundev Gombobaatar

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

In the breeding seasons 2001 to 2003, the avifauna of a study area of about 80 km² in the Selenge Aymag was studied.

The area is characterized by loose groves of elms (Ulmus pumila) and pine trees (Pinus sylvestris), and a chain of barchan dunes which separate the Orkhon valley from the up to 70 m higher situated forest steppe. Steppe species (Stipa spp.) dominate in the south; the northern steppe part is characterized by Caragana bushes (Caragana microphylla, locally C. stenophylla). Between Orkhon Gol and the eastern dunes, dry steppe …

Die Parasitierung Der Luzerne-Blattschneiderbiene, Megachile Rotundata (Hymenoptera: Megachilidae), Durch Physocephala Pusilla (Diptera: Conopidae) In Der Mongolei = Parasitization Of The Alfalfa Leaf-Cutter Bee, Megachile Rotundata (Hymenoptera: Megachilidae), By Physocephala Pusilla (Diptera: Conopidae) In Mongolia, Karsten Seidelmann

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

Physocephala pusilla Meigen (Diptera: Conopidae) was found to be a dangerous endoparasitoid of the alfalfa leafcutter bee Megachile rotundata F. (Hymenoptera: Megachilidae) in Mongolia. The conopid fly parasitizes adults and causes their early death. In 1989 and 1990, 16% and 15% respectively of the M. rotundata females were found dead in front of the bee shelter. However, the number of bees (females and males) dying in the field is unknown. These bees cause a contamination of the alfalfa fields due to an increase of the conopid population. Therefore, Ph. pusilla becomes a serious problem for the management of M. rotundata …

Natürliche Und Nutzungsbedingte Land- Und Bodendegradationsprozesse, Untersucht Am Unteren Orchon (Nord-Mongolei) = Naturally And Land Use Caused Land And Soil Degradation Processes, Studied At The Lower Orchon (Northern Mongolia), Christian Opp

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

Landscape-ecological investigations were carried-out within the forest steppe of Northern Mongolia. The site conditions of the partly by agriculture used area of Cagaan Tolgoj at the Lower Orchon (Aimag Selenge) were analysed in seven test areas. Results of soil analysis are given. The evaluation of soil cover and partly vegetation cover was carried-out with special regard, to degradation phaenomena. It is based on field analysis, measurements during the soil survey and the detection of soil degradation parameter with the help of laboratory analysis. Among naturally and land use caused factors of soil status and of the changing conditions within forest …

Die Gasteromyceten Der Mongolei Und Ihre Bedeutung Für Die Systematik, Chorologie Und Ökologie) = The Mongolian Gasteromycetes And Their Importance For The Systematics, Chorology, And Ecology, Heinrich Dörfelt

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

More than fifty species of Gasteromycetes were collected in Mongolia from 1970 to 2002. Five new species in the genera Geastrum, Lycoperdon, Gastrosporium, and Colus were described by Pilát (1972), Kreisel (1975), Dörfelt (1981) and Dörfelt & Bumžaa (1986). The importance of Mongolian Gasteromycetes for few taxonomical, chorological or ecological problems is discussed in this paper, especially for the species Battarraea phalloides, Disciseda arida, D. bovista, D. candida, Gastrosporium asiaticum, Geastrum simplex, G. corollinum (G. recolligens), G. deylii, G. floriforme, G. huneckii, G. hungaricum, G. …

Origin And Evolution Of Large Brains In Toothed Whales, Lori Marino, Daniel W. Mcshea, Mark D. Uhen

Veterinary Science and Medicine Collection

Toothed whales (order Cetacea: suborder Odontoceti) are highly encephalized, possessing brains that are significantly larger than expected for their body sizes. In particular, the odontocete superfamily Delphinoidea (dolphins, porpoises, belugas, and narwhals) comprises numerous species with encephalization levels second only to modern humans and greater than all other mammals. Odontocetes have also demonstrated behavioral faculties previously only ascribed to humans and, to some extent, other great apes. How did the large brains of odontocetes evolve? To begin to investigate this question, we quantified and averaged estimates of brain and body size for 36 fossil cetacean species using computed tomography and …