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Articles 1 - 16 of 16
Full-Text Articles in Paleobiology
The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Host: Fleas And The History Of Pikas In North America, Josh Pletcher
The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Host: Fleas And The History Of Pikas In North America, Josh Pletcher
All NMU Master's Theses
Parasite phylogenetics can offer windows into the cryptic evolutionary history of hosts, often highlighting events that are not recorded by the phylogenetics of the host. Pikas (small lagomorphs) host a diverse parasite community comprising endoparasites (e.g., coccidians, nematodes, and cestodes) and ectoparasites (e.g., fleas and mites). Phylogenetic analysis of pika endoparasites has revealed pikas evolved in Asia and colonized North America in two waves, and that contact between these two pika lineages allowed parasites to be transferred from one lineage to another and to survive the extinction of their original host. To uncover these cryptic histories, understanding the biogeography of …
Ontogeny And The Effects Of Perinatal Stress In The First Immature Skeleton Of Teleoceras Aepysoma (Perissodactyla, Rhinocerotidae), Joe Gajewski
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Recovery of an immature fossil rhinoceros (Teleoceras aepysoma) skeleton (ETMNH 32999) from the Gray Fossil Site in Tennessee offers the first insights into the ontogeny of the species. ETMNH 32999 is interpreted to be a subadult male in an age class equivalent to ~17-20% of potential lifespan. Comparative analyses support the hypothesis that subadults of related taxa are typically ~91% of average adult size in most dimensions. However, certain cranial dimensions are substantially lower than expected in ETMNH 32999, averaging only ~74% of the average conspecific adult. Such departure from typical growth rates is suggested to be attributable …
A Multi-Isotope Investigation Of Mammoth Diet, Habitat, And Movement Patterns In The Central Great Plains, U.S.A., Jacob Mccloskey
A Multi-Isotope Investigation Of Mammoth Diet, Habitat, And Movement Patterns In The Central Great Plains, U.S.A., Jacob Mccloskey
Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
During the Last Glacial Maximum (LGM), the Great Plains in Nebraska consisted of wooded parklands and grasslands, whereas spruce (Picea) forests, parklands, and steppe grasslands dominated east of the Missouri River. I analyzed bulk carbon (δ13C), oxygen (δ18O), and strontium (87Sr/86Sr) isotopes from tooth enamel in isolated mammoth (Mammuthus) molars to compare diet and movement patterns in two late Pleistocene assemblages: one in Nebraska (n = 24), and one in western Iowa and Missouri (n = 17). Furthermore, I identified a morphometric subset of molars as …
Ediacaran Paleocommunity Structure, Body Size Evolution, And The Rise Of Complex Animals, Matthew Philip Craffey
Ediacaran Paleocommunity Structure, Body Size Evolution, And The Rise Of Complex Animals, Matthew Philip Craffey
Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–
The Ediacaran period (635-538ma) is a key interval in the evolution of life as it records the first macroscopic animal communities. Major extinction pulses appear to have altered the composition of the global marine biosphere between each sub-interval of the Ediacaran Period: the Avalon, White Sea, and Nama assemblage Zones. While considerable attention has been paid to the causes of these extinction pulses, less has been afforded to the consequences of Ediacaran biotic turnover for community organization and function. Moreover, it is unclear how body size - the defining trait of macrofauna - affected the transition between animal groups across …
Biostratigraphic Revision Of Esthonyx (Tillidontia, Mammalia) In The Contect Of Climate Change In The Lower Eocene Of The Bighorn Basin, Wyoming, John Colter Johnson
Biostratigraphic Revision Of Esthonyx (Tillidontia, Mammalia) In The Contect Of Climate Change In The Lower Eocene Of The Bighorn Basin, Wyoming, John Colter Johnson
Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
Esthonyx is an early Eocene tillodont found in North America, Europe, and India. The genus was named by Edward Drinker (E. D.) Cope in 1874 based on specimens from the San Jose Formation in New Mexico. Since then, several species of Esthonyx have been described from North America alone. The best record of Esthonyx comes from the central Bighorn Basin (BHB) in Wyoming, where it appears in 220 localities in a 640 m-thick stratigraphic succession. Since the last summary of Esthonyx in the BHB, several hundred new specimens have been collected and curated at the Denver Museum of Nature and …
Pathology And Osteological Observations Of Early Pliocene Rhinoceros, Teleoceras Aepysoma (Perissodactyla, Rhinocerotidae) From Gray Fossil Site, Tennessee, Thomas Scaife
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Rhinoceroses were an important part of North America’s Paleogene and Neogene ecosystems, with Teleoceras aepysoma being one of the last representatives of this family. Specimens of T. aepysoma from the Gray Fossil Site (GFS) possess distinct/peculiar pathologies: including a pair of fused ribs and ankylosed phalanges. A qualitative description of the pathologies in the GFS T. aepysoma, including new material, was conducted to accurately identify pathologies and make interpretations about the life history of the GFS rhinos. Analysis suggests that rheumatoid arthritis is common in the lower limb bones of GFS rhinos. Additionally, the rib and toe pathologies are more …
New Species Of Dryolestoid From The Late Cretaceous Allen Formation And Implications For South American Faunal Diversity., Brigid Erin Connelly
New Species Of Dryolestoid From The Late Cretaceous Allen Formation And Implications For South American Faunal Diversity., Brigid Erin Connelly
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Dryolestoids are extinct cladotherians mammals from the Jurassic and Cretaceous periods. I describe a collection of dryolestoid specimens from the Late Cretaceous localities of Cerro Tortuga (Allen Formation), Anfiteatro 1, and Shining (both La Colonia Formation) from Patagonia, Argentina. Using comparative morphology, I identify a new species of meridiolestidan dryolestoid based on eleven specimens across both formations. The new species’ recovery from La Colonia Formation represents the first dryolestoid connection between the two approximately contemporaneous formations. The species’ morphology may represent an ecological shift within Meridiolestida from insectivory to herbivory, showing a transition in characters between the plesiomorphic sharp-toothed meridiolestidans …
New Reports Of Smilodon And Panthera From North American Cave Sites With Reviews Of Taxonomy, Biogeography, And History, Matthew Bushell
New Reports Of Smilodon And Panthera From North American Cave Sites With Reviews Of Taxonomy, Biogeography, And History, Matthew Bushell
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
In this study, three new reports of large felids from the Pleistocene are presented and discussed. A single partial left dentary from Jawbone Cave represents the first confirmed presence of S. fatalis in east Tennessee and was sampled for radiocarbon dating. Wind Tunnel and Chilly Bowl Cave are among the first records of P. onca to be identified confidently from Arkansas. Chilly Bowl Cave also produced two trackways attributable to Panthera sp., one set potentially belonging to P. atrox. In addition to the description of these remains and the caves they were found in, taxonomic histories for both S. fatalis …
The Anatomy And Phylogeny Of A New Large Plioplatecarpine Mosasaur From The Campanian Bearpaw Shale Of Montana (Usa), Richard A. Carr
The Anatomy And Phylogeny Of A New Large Plioplatecarpine Mosasaur From The Campanian Bearpaw Shale Of Montana (Usa), Richard A. Carr
Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice
In 2018, a large and associated plioplatecarpine mosasaur skull, pectoral girdle, and rib cage, whose total body length may have exceeded five meters, was uncovered in the Late Campanian Bearpaw Shale of Northeast Montana (USA). Phylogenetic analysis of this specimen, MOR 10855, recovers this individual as a basal member of the genus Plioplatecarpus. This specimen, is unique in that it is estimated to be nearly twice the size of any of the other species of Plioplatecarpus found in the Western Interior Seaway during this part of the Cretaceous. While the included phylogenetic study suggests MOR 10855 represents a new …
Reconstructing The Ecological Relationships Of Late Cretaceous Antarctic Dinosaurs And How Functional Tooth Morphology Influenced These Relationships, Ian D. Broxson
2022 Symposium
The Sandwich Bluff Formation of the James Ross Basin of Antarctica has recently yielded a group of five late Cretaceous dinosaurs that lived contemporaneously with each other, a first for Antarctica. These five dinosaurs include fragmentary remains of two differently sized elasmarian ornithopods, a possible megaraptor, a hadrosaur, and a nodosaur. In this study we will construct a model of the ecological relationships of late Cretaceous Antarctica. Additionally, we will look at what specific factors allowed this group of four herbivores and a carnivore to coexist in a restricted locality and what niches were filled by each species. Methods to …
Effects Of Environmental Change On Ancestral Pueblo Fishing In The Middle Rio Grande, Jonathan William Dombrosky
Effects Of Environmental Change On Ancestral Pueblo Fishing In The Middle Rio Grande, Jonathan William Dombrosky
Anthropology ETDs
It has long been assumed that fishes were unimportant in the diet of past Pueblo people in the U.S. Southwest. Yet, small numbers of fish remains are consistently recovered from Late pre-Hispanic/Early Historic archaeological sites in the Middle Rio Grande of New Mexico. The end of drought conditions may have impacted food choice and fishing decisions during this time. I use behavioral ecology to understand how fishing could have been an optimal food-getting strategy for Ancestral Pueblo farmers. Stable isotope analysis offers a way to account for environmental change. I provide a refined 13C Suess correction model to support …
Holocene Records Of Nebraska Mammals, Hugh H. Genoways
Holocene Records Of Nebraska Mammals, Hugh H. Genoways
Zea E-Books Collection
A survey of the archeological and paleontological literature allowed a compilation of Holocene records of mammals in Nebraska. This survey identified Holocene records from 338 sites in 62 of the 93 Nebraska counties. These counties were located throughout state, but there was a concentration of sites in southwestern Nebraska where there were 27 fossil sites in Frontier County and 22 in Harlan County. Fossils sites were underrepresented in the Sand Hills region. Records of fossil mammals covered the entire Holocene period from 13,000 years ago until AD 1850. A minimum of 57 species (with eight additional species potentially present) representing …
Ontogenetic And Adult Shape Variation In The Endocast Of Tapirus: Implications For T. Polkensis From The Gray Fossil Site, Thomas M. Gaetano
Ontogenetic And Adult Shape Variation In The Endocast Of Tapirus: Implications For T. Polkensis From The Gray Fossil Site, Thomas M. Gaetano
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Endocranial morphology provides evidence of sensory ecology and sociality of extinct vertebrates. The Earliest Pliocene Gray Fossil Site (GFS) of NE Tennessee features a conspicuous dominance of skeletal elements belonging to the dwarf tapir, Tapirus polkensis. Numerous individuals in one fossil locality often suggests gregarious behavior, but sociality in T. polkensis contradicts behavior documented for extant Tapirus species. I test T. polkensis for variation in sensory and social ecology using computed tomography and 3D digital endocasts from an ontogenetic sequence. I compare the T. polkensis endocasts with extant Tapirus species using Encephalization Quotients (EQs) and 3D geometric morphometrics. Results …
Encephalization In Commensal Raccoons: A Unique Test Of The Cognitive Buffer Hypothesis, Peter M. Anderson
Encephalization In Commensal Raccoons: A Unique Test Of The Cognitive Buffer Hypothesis, Peter M. Anderson
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
This study investigated selective pressures associated with encephalization in mammals and discussed broader implications. Relative brain size as measured by EQ (Encephalization Quotient) was compared between ecological categories. Omnivores had higher average EQ than ecological specialists. Since specialists are disproportionately affected by extinction events, selection for ecological generalism is proposed as encephalization mechanism. This mechanism may reinforce the more widely known Cognitive Buffer Hypothesis (CBH)—the idea that possessing relatively large brains has buffered lineages against environmental change. CBH is tested here by comparing EQs in Procyon lotor (raccoon) in urban and rural environments. CBH predicts that raccoons in the most …
An Assessment Of Convergence In The Feeding Morphology Of Xiphactinus Audax And Megalops Atlanticus Using Landmark-Based Geometric Morphometrics, Edward Chase Shelburne
An Assessment Of Convergence In The Feeding Morphology Of Xiphactinus Audax And Megalops Atlanticus Using Landmark-Based Geometric Morphometrics, Edward Chase Shelburne
Master's Theses or Doctor of Nursing Practice
Convergence is an evolutionary phenomenon wherein distantly related organisms independently develop features or functional adaptations to overcome similar environmental constraints. Historically, convergence among organisms has been speculated or asserted with little rigorous or quantitative investigation. More recent advancements in systematics has allowed for the detection and study of convergence in a phylogenetic context, but this does little to elucidate convergent anatomical features in extinct taxa with poorly understood evolutionary histories. The purpose of this study is to investigate one potentially convergent system—the feeding structure of Xiphactinus audax (Teleostei: Ichthyodectiformes) and Megalops atlanticus (Teleostei: Elopiformes)—using a comparative anatomical approach to assess …
Late Prehistoric And Protohistoric Large Mammal Zoogeography Of Virginia, Robert K. Rose
Late Prehistoric And Protohistoric Large Mammal Zoogeography Of Virginia, Robert K. Rose
Biological Sciences Faculty Publications
Evidence derived from18late prehistoric (middle and late Woodland Period) archeological sites, from several early historical accounts, and from the current understanding of the distribution of Virginia mammals indicates that the large mammal fauna of the Commonwealth has not changed substantially within the past 4,000 yrs. Some species (e.g., bison, elk, timber wolf, and mountain lion) have been extirpated since the settlement of Virginia by Europeans; some previously extirpated species (e.g., porcupine, coyote, and beaver) have been naturally or artificially reintroduced during the historical period, and others (e.g., woodchuck and red fox) probably have expanded their distributions as a result of …