First Successful Capture And Satellite Tracking Of A West Indian Manatee (Trichechus Manatus) In Panama: Feasibility Of Capture And Telemetry Techniques,
2015
Andrews University
First Successful Capture And Satellite Tracking Of A West Indian Manatee (Trichechus Manatus) In Panama: Feasibility Of Capture And Telemetry Techniques, Daniel Gonzalez-Socoloske, James P. Reid, Carlos Espinoza-Marin, Kherson E. Ruiz, Kenneth E. Glander, Leon David Olivera-Gomez
Faculty Publications
It is currently unknown how important the Central American countries south of Belize are as a link between manatee populations in the north (Belize and Mexico) and populations in South America. Therefore, apart from knowing where manatees are found, it is important to understand how manatees are using these habitats and if they are moving between countries or distinct population centers. Here we report the results of a multi-national and multiinstitutional collaboration resulting in the first successful capture and satellite tracking of a West Indian manatee in southern Central America.
The Role Of Mate Preference And Personality On Reproductive Performance In An Ex-Situ Conservation Breeding Program For The Giant Panda (Ailuropoda Melanoleuca),
2014
Portland State University
The Role Of Mate Preference And Personality On Reproductive Performance In An Ex-Situ Conservation Breeding Program For The Giant Panda (Ailuropoda Melanoleuca), Meghan S. Martin
Dissertations and Theses
Successful captive-breeding and re-introduction programs must have the ability to breed a surplus of genetically suitable animals for release into the wild. Unfortunately, many individuals in captive breeding programs often do not reproduce even when they are apparently healthy and presented with genetically appropriate mates. Mate choice can affect multiple parameters of reproductive sperformance, including mating success, offspring production, survival, and fecundity. We investigated the role of mate preference and personality on the reproductive performance of male and female giant pandas (Ailuropoda melanoleuca) as measured by intromission success and litter production. We conducted these studies on giant pandas at the …
Differences In The Diversity Of Frogspecies Between Sierra Lloronaand El Valle, Panama,
2014
SIT Study Abroad
Differences In The Diversity Of Frogspecies Between Sierra Lloronaand El Valle, Panama, Kei Okabe Thurber
Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection
Panama is home to the greatest diversity of species in all of Central America. It is home to 174 species of frogs, 35 of which are endemic to Panama. Frogs are a vital part of many ecosystems. They maintain insect populations and act as food sources for larger predators. Their job of maintaining insect populations is essential to curbing the spread of diseases. Additionally, scientists have found chemical compounds in the skin of frogs that can be used to treat pain and prevent infections. The main threat to the majority of frogs is the deadly fungus Batrachochytrium dendrobatidis (Bd), or …
Biomarkers Of Inflammation, Metabolism, And Oxidative Stress In Blood, Liver, And Milk Reveal A Better Immunometabolic Status In Peripartal Cows Supplemented With Smartamine M Or Metasmart,
2014
University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
Biomarkers Of Inflammation, Metabolism, And Oxidative Stress In Blood, Liver, And Milk Reveal A Better Immunometabolic Status In Peripartal Cows Supplemented With Smartamine M Or Metasmart, J. S. Osorio, E. Trevisi, P. Ji, J. K. Drackley, D. Luchini, G. Bertoni, J. J. Loor
Physiology Collection
The peripartal dairy cow experiences a state of reduced liver function coupled with increased inflammation and oxidative stress. This study evaluated the effect of supplementing basal diets with rumen-protected Met in the form of MetaSmart (MS) or Smartamine M (SM) (both from Adisseo Inc., Antony, France) during the peripartal period on blood and hepatic biomarkers of liver function, inflammation, and oxidative stress. Thirty-seven multiparous Holstein cows were fed the same basal diet from −50 to −21 d relative to expected calving [1.24 Mcal/kg of dry matter (DM); no Met supplementation]. From −21 d to calving, the cows received diets …
Index-Based Insurance And Risk Management
Among Nomadic Mongolian Herders
,
2014
SIT Study Abroad
Index-Based Insurance And Risk Management Among Nomadic Mongolian Herders , Kelsey Larson
Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection
Mongolian herders must contend with the risk of dzuds, harsh winters that can kill large numbers of livestock. To do so, they use a mixture of formal financial tools and traditional risk mitigation techniques. This paper is a study of the interaction between the Mongolian Index-based Livestock Insurance Program and traditional informal risk mitigation techniques. The researcher interviews herders in Bulgan soum, Arhangai aimag and Galuut soum, Bayanhongor aimag to compare the IBLI program’s impact in a community that has had IBLI since 2006 and one that only received IBLI in 2012. This study finds that insurance purchase is positively …
Managing Devil Facial Tumour Disease In Tasmanian Devils (Sarcophilus Harrisii): An Investigation Of Heat Shock Proteins As Potential Vaccine Adjuvants,
2014
SIT Study Abroad
Managing Devil Facial Tumour Disease In Tasmanian Devils (Sarcophilus Harrisii): An Investigation Of Heat Shock Proteins As Potential Vaccine Adjuvants, Monika Payerhin
Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection
The world’s largest carnivorous marsupial, the Tasmanian devil (Sarcophilus harrisii), is facing extinction from a deadly, highly communicable cancer that has already decimated over 85% of devil populations in the wild: devil facial tumour disease (DFTD). DFTD cells effectively evade recognition by the immune system, and every devil that contracts the disease dies from it. Many attempts have been made at developing a vaccine that could help save this now-threatened species. Heat shock proteins have been linked to enhanced immune recognition of pathogens, making them potential candidates for acting as adjuvants to such a vaccine against DFTD. In this study, …
Freeing Nemo,
2014
Gettysburg College
Freeing Nemo, Stephanie K. Adamczak
SURGE
Floating on the surface of the water, I observe the life teeming below me. The waves were carrying my body further and further into the beautiful reef; but all I was conscious of was the cleaner wrasse below bouncing from fish to fish, the parrotfish scraping algae from the coral, and the anemone protecting the ornate clownfish living within. [excerpt]
Fish Cognition,
2014
Université de Neuchâtel
Fish Cognition, Redouan Bshary, Culum Brown
Social Cognition Collection
No abstract provided.
Economic Contribution Of Agriculture And Food To Arkansas' Gross Domestic Product 1997-2012,
2014
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville
Economic Contribution Of Agriculture And Food To Arkansas' Gross Domestic Product 1997-2012, Leah English, Jennie Popp, Wayne Miller
AAES Research Reports and Research Bulletins
Agricultural production, processing, and retail industries are major contributors to the Arkansas economy in terms of GDP. Agriculture contributes to the economy through direct agricultural production, value-added processing, and agricultural retail activities, and it also plays an important role through its interactions with other sectors. The use of non-agricultural goods and services as inputs into the agricultural sector promotes diversified growth in Arkansas’ economy; thus agriculture remains a vital part of Arkansas’ economy. This report: 1) compares the relative size of the Agriculture and Food Sector in Arkansas with those of neighboring states, the Southeastern region of the United States, …
Dangerous Mating Systems: Signal Complexity, Signal Content And Neural Capacity In Spiders,
2014
Macquarie University, Sydney, Australia
Dangerous Mating Systems: Signal Complexity, Signal Content And Neural Capacity In Spiders, Marie E. Herberstein, Anne E. Wignall, Eileen Hebets, Jutta M. Schneider
Eileen Hebets Publications
Spiders are highly efficient predators in possession of exquisite sensory capacities for ambushing prey, combined with machinery for launching rapid and determined attacks. As a consequence, any sexually motivated approach carries a risk of ending up as prey rather than as a mate. Sexual selection has shaped courtship to effectively communicate the presence, identity, motivation and/or quality of potential mates, which help ameliorate these risks. Spiders communicate this information via several sensory channels, including mechanical (e.g. vibrational), visual and/or chemical, with examples of multimodal signaling beginning to emerge in the literature. The diverse environments that spiders inhabit have further shaped …
Canine Sense And Sensibility: Tipping Points And Response Latency Variability As An Optimism Index In A Canine Judgement Bias Assessment,
2014
University of Sydney
Canine Sense And Sensibility: Tipping Points And Response Latency Variability As An Optimism Index In A Canine Judgement Bias Assessment, Melissa J. Starling, Nicholas Branson, Denis Cody, Timothy R. Starling, Paul D. Mcgreevy
Cognitive Ethology Collection
Recent advances in animal welfare science used judgement bias, a type of cognitive bias, as a means to objectively measure an animal's affective state. It is postulated that animals showing heightened expectation of positive outcomes may be categorised optimistic, while those showing heightened expectations of negative outcomes may be considered pessimistic. This study pioneers the use of a portable, automated apparatus to train and test the judgement bias of dogs. Dogs were trained in a discrimination task in which they learned to touch a target after a tone associated with a lactose-free milk reward and abstain from touching the target …
Economic Contribution Of The Agricultural Sector To The Arkansas Economy In 2012,
2014
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville
Economic Contribution Of The Agricultural Sector To The Arkansas Economy In 2012, Leah English, Jennie Popp, Wayne Miller
AAES Research Reports and Research Bulletins
This report is the ninth in a series of reports examining agriculture’s economic contribution on the Arkansas economy. Utilizing data from the United States Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA), USDA Economic Research Service (ERS), USDA National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS), and IMPLAN Group, LLC , the economic contribution of agriculture on the Arkansas economy was estimated for the most recent year available, 2012.
Anthropomorphism, Anthropectomy, And The Null Hypothesis,
2014
York University
Anthropomorphism, Anthropectomy, And The Null Hypothesis, Kristin Andrews, Brian Huss
Experimentation Collection
We examine the claim that the methodology of psychology leads to a bias in animal cognition research against attributing ‘‘anthropomorphic’’ properties to animals (Sober in Thinking with animals: new perspectives on anthropomorphism. Columbia University Press, New York, pp 85–99, 2005; de Waal in Philos Top 27:225–280, 1999). This charge is examined in light of a debate on the role of folk psychology between primatologists who emphasize similarities between humans and other apes, and those who emphasize differences. Weargue that while in practice there is sometimes bias, either in the formulation of the null hypothesis or in the preference of Type-II …
Laterality Influences Cognitive Performance In Rainbowfish Melanotaenia Duboulayi,
2014
Macquarie University
Laterality Influences Cognitive Performance In Rainbowfish Melanotaenia Duboulayi, Anne-Laurence Bibost, Culum Brown
Sentience Collection
Cerebral lateralization has been suggested to convey a selective advantage to individuals by enhancing their cognitive abilities. Few, however, have explicitly compared the cognitive ability of animals with strongly contrasting laterality. Here, we examined the influence of laterality on learning performance in the crimson spotted rainbowfish, Melanotaenia duboulayi, using a classical conditioning paradigm. We also compared the learning ability of wild caught and captive-reared fish to examine the influence of rearing environment on cognitive performance. Laterality was established by observing which eye fish preferred to use while viewing their mirror image. Subjects were then conditioned to associate the appearance of …
A Comparison Of Spatial Learning And Memory Capabilities In Intertidal Gobies,
2014
Macquarie University
A Comparison Of Spatial Learning And Memory Capabilities In Intertidal Gobies, Gemma E. White, Culum Brown
Sentience Collection
For the majority of animals, the ability to orient in familiar locations is a fundamental part of life, and spatial memory allows individuals to remember key locations such as food patches, shelter, mating sites or areas regularly occupied by predators. This study determined if gobies collected from rocky platforms and sandy beaches differ in their ability to learn and memorise the locations of tide pools in a simulated rocky intertidal zone. Intertidal rock pool gobies show acute homing abilities and, therefore, should be expected to display superior learning and memory capabilities. In contrast, it is unlikely that natural selection would …
Behaviour Of Horses In A Judgment Bias Test Associated With Positive Or Negative Reinforcement,
2014
Agroscope - Swiss National Stud Farm
Behaviour Of Horses In A Judgment Bias Test Associated With Positive Or Negative Reinforcement, Sabrina Briefer Freymond, Elodie F. Briefer, Anja Zollinger, Yveline Gindrat-Von Allmen, Christa Wyss, Iris Bachmann
Ethology Collection
Moods can influence our judgment of ambiguous stimuli as positive or negative. Measuring judgment bias in animals is a promising method to objectively assess their emotional states. Our study aimed to develop a cognitive bias test in horses, in order to assess the effect of training using positive reinforcement (PR) or negative reinforcement (NR) on their emotional states. We trained 12 mares to discriminate between a rewarded and a non-rewarded location situated on each side of a paddock. The mares were then trained during five days to perform several exercises using PR (n = 6) for one group, and NR …
Emotional Engagements Predict And Enhance Social Cognition In Young Chimpanzees,
2014
University of Portsmouth
Emotional Engagements Predict And Enhance Social Cognition In Young Chimpanzees, Kim A. Bard, Roger Bakeman, Sarah T. Boysen, David A. Leavens
Sentience Collection
Social cognition in infancy is evident in coordinated triadic engagements, that is, infants attending jointly with social partners and objects. Current evolutionary theories of primate social cognition tend to highlight species differences in cognition based on human-unique cooperative motives. We consider a developmental model in which engagement experiences produce differential outcomes. We conducted a 10-year-long study in which two groups of laboratory-raised chimpanzee infants were given quantifiably different engagement experiences. Joint attention, cooperativeness, affect, and different levels of cognition were measured in 5- to 12-month-old chimpanzees, and compared to outcomes derived from a normative human database. We found that joint …
New Insight Into The Effects Of Small Heat Shock Proteins On Callipyge Lamb Meat Tenderness,
2014
Purdue University
New Insight Into The Effects Of Small Heat Shock Proteins On Callipyge Lamb Meat Tenderness, Traci Cramer, Yuan H Brad Kim, Danyi Ma, Jolena N. Waddell, Moriah Penick
The Summer Undergraduate Research Fellowship (SURF) Symposium
Callipyge lambs are a type of sheep that are genetically known to produce tough meat. High expression of calpastatin, which inhibits proteolytic activity of µ-calpain, has been identified as the main factor behind the toughness of callipyge lamb meat. Another group of proteins called small heat shock proteins (sHSP) has recently been suggested for its possible involvement in tenderness development of meat, where up-regulation of sHSP may be associated with toughness. However, the role of sHSP in meat tenderization of callipyge lambs has never been investigated; therefore, the objective of this study is to determine possible involvement of sHSP in …
Effect Of Supplemental Trace Mineral (Zinc, Copper, And Manganese) Source On Growth Performance, Morbidity, And Trace Mineral Status In Beef Cattle,
2014
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville
Effect Of Supplemental Trace Mineral (Zinc, Copper, And Manganese) Source On Growth Performance, Morbidity, And Trace Mineral Status In Beef Cattle, Anthony Ryan
Graduate Theses and Dissertations
A series of studies were conducted to determine the effect of supplemental trace mineral source on growth performance, morbidity, and trace mineral status in growing beef cattle. The first experiment evaluated supplemental trace minerals from sulfate, organic, or hydroxy sources on growth performance and morbidity. Crossbreed beef calves were assigned to 1 of 3 treatments consisting of supplemental zinc (360 mg/d), copper (125 mg/d), and manganese (200 mg/d) from inorganic, organic, or hydroxy sources fed daily over a 42 to 45-d backgrounding phase. After removal of chronic and dead calves from the data set, trace mineral source had no effect …
Influence Of Steroids And Gonadotropins On Reproduction In Beef Cattle,
2014
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville
Influence Of Steroids And Gonadotropins On Reproduction In Beef Cattle, Thomas L. Devine
Graduate Theses and Dissertations
The objective of this thesis was to evaluate the influence of steroids and gonadotropins on reproduction in beef cattle. In experiment 1, beef heifers were used to determine the influence of growth-promoting implants on growth, reproductive development, estrous behavior, and pregnancy rate. Heifers were assigned to 1 of 4 implant treatment groups: control (CON); trenbolone acetate (TBA); trenbolone acetate plus estradiol (TBA+E2) or zeranol (ZER). Heifers were implanted once, A.I. and exposed to bull during this experiment. Body weight, BCS, HH, RTS, estrous behavior and pregnancy data were collected throughout this experiment. Average daily gain of heifers was greater for …
