Ecology and Evolutionary Biology Commons^™

Ecology Of Estuarine Birds: Differences In Desensitization Of Year-Round And Transient Species, Sarah Thomas

Honors Theses

Huntington Beach State Park in Murrells Inlet, SC, USA is considered a “hotspot” for birds, according to the eBird database (eBird, 2020). The park is also visited by approximately 300,000 people, annually (Hobdy, 2019). The causeway at the park is an area of high human and wildlife activity. Here, the differences in desensitization, or lack thereof, of year-round and transient bird species to the stimuli of vehicles and humans were determined. Multiple surveys of the birds at Huntington Beach State Park were conducted from 22nd September, 2019 to 13th June, 2020. Desensitization was quantified by use of a range ...

Detection Of Neonicotinoids In Northern Leopard Frog (Rana Pipiens) Brains, Peyton G. Keller

Honors Thesis

Neonicotinoids are widespread and commonly used to fight agricultural pests. Unfortunately, these neurotoxic insecticides commonly reach nearby wetlands due to tile drainage systems and agricultural runoff. Non-target organisms, such as amphibians, use wetlands as habitat and are likely exposed to elevated neonicotinoid levels. We collected Northern leopard frogs and water samples from control and tile wetlands to compare imidacloprid brain concentrations and subsequent changes in brain morphology. Additionally, a lab-based experiment was conducted to further analyze the ability of imidacloprid and its metabolite, imidacloprid-olefin, to cross the blood-brain barrier. Tile wetlands had higher aquatic imidacloprid concentrations. Subsequently, amphibians collected from ...

Big Five Personality Traits And Political Orientation: An Inquiry Into Political Beliefs, Ian E. Phillips

The Downtown Review

Personality research centered on the Big Five personality traits has heavily impacted our understanding in regards to what forces orient a person on a political spectrum. Examining how personality differences interact with political orientation, this research seeks to provide information on what makes someone either more or less likely to be liberal or conservative based on their temperament. In this paper, previous personality research is synthesized into one discussion, centered on what the effects of each trait are and how they impact political orientation, the heritability of personality, and what implications there are for such research in the realm of ...

Terrestrial Soldier Crab (Coenobita Clypeatus, Fabricius 1787) And Cerion Spp. (Röding 1798) Shell Relationship On San Salvador Island, Bahamas, Harley Hunt

Biology Theses

The Caribbean terrestrial soldier crab, Coenobita clypeatus(Fabricius 1787), coexist and utilize the shells of numerous species of land and marine gastropods. Soldier crabs rely on gastropod shells for protection as the crabs have a soft abdomen, leaving them vulnerable for predation and desiccation, threatening their survival. This creates a strong pressure to obtain well-fitting shells that provide adequate protection against water loss. Cerion of Röding (1798) shells are one of the most commonly used shells among living colonies of C. clypeatuson San Salvador Island. This study is interested in the frequency of shell use by C. clypeatus crabs ...

Predator-Prey Interactions Between Escherichia Coli Strains And Caenorhabditis Elegans At Various Temperatures And Resource Levels, Elizabeth Haynes Whitaker

Honors Theses

Predation is an important component of both evolutionary and ecological interactions across nature. The predator-prey relationship can be altered by differential species’ responses to changes in abiotic factors. The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of temperature, resource levels, and their potential interactions using two strains of Escherichia coli prey and a Caenorhabditis elegans predator. It is concluded that an interaction exists between temperature and resource level on this predator-prey relationship however further testing must be done to confirm results due to contamination in the results.

Sublethal Effects Of Red Imported Fire Ant Envenomation On Hatchlings Of North American Oviparous Snakes, Hannah Warner, Meredith Swartwout

Crop, Soil and Environmental Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Invasive species cause major ecological and economic damage. The Red Imported Fire Ant (RIFA; Solenopsis invicta) has successfully invaded much of the southeastern United States and has caused both widespread economic damage and is suspected to be the driver of enigmatic declines of several oviparous snake species. This study aimed to determine the sublethal effects of RIFA on hatchlings of six species of oviparous snakes (Coluber constrictor, Lampropeltis calligaster, L. holbrooki, Opheodrys aestivus, Pantherophis emoryi, and P. obsoletus) by exposing hatchlings to envenomation by RIFA and then measuring two performance metrics: righting response and swimming speed. We found a slight ...

Not All Pollinator Gardens Are Created Equally: Determining Factors Pertinent To Improving Pollinator Garden Effectiveness, Travis Watson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Increasing evidence documenting the decline of insect populations, resulting from increasing human disturbances has resulted in efforts to establish pollinator gardens to provide additional resources for insect populations. However, our understanding of biotic and abiotic garden characteristics important for attracting and sustaining pollinator diversity is limited. Here, we evaluated 17 pollinator gardens to evaluate the effect of five biotic and three abiotic garden characteristics on pollinator species richness, abundance, and proportional representation of four pollinator functional groups. Plant species richness positively influenced pollinator richness and negatively influenced flower visitation. Bombus proportional abundance responded to several variables (distance to vegetation, plant ...

Trends In Us Crop Yields & Water Use, Britta L. Schumacher

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Over half the land in the US is dedicated to agriculture, with the vast majority of all cropland cultivated in corn, wheat, or soybean. Despite continuing advances in agricultural technologies, and consistent yield growth over the twentieth century, research suggests that environmental change is already impacting agricultural yield and future changes are sure to exacerbate challenges to agricultural production. It follows that the future of US agriculture depends on the evolution of the changing climate, the relationship between crop yields and the environment, on-farm management and adaptations, the ecosystems that support agriculture, the political and economic incentives that shape what ...

Effects Of Respiratory Perturbations On Aging And Healthspan In Daphnia Magna, Millicent Nkiruka Ekwudo

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Aging is a degenerative process characterized by a decline in physiological functions and cellular activities. Environmental and pharmacological interventions affecting longevity pathways have been extensively studied in model organisms. This study investigated the effect of chronic mild intermittent hypoxia (4 mg O2/L) or mild mitochondrial uncoupling with three doses of 0 (control), 0.1, 1, and 5 μM of 2,4-Dinitrophenol (DNP), on life history and gene expression in four clones of Daphnia magna. Interestingly, clones from intermittent ponds displayed better tolerance to hypoxia and DNP. Although neither treatments extended longevity, hypoxia increased fecundity and body size, and decreased ...

Competitive Interactions Among Co-Infecting Symbionts In A Model Animal-Associated Microbiome, Justin L. Pritchett

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

Effect Of A Near-Zero Magnetic Field On Development And Flight Of Oriental Armyworm (Mythimna Separata), Meng-Meng Yan, Lei Zhang, Yun-Xia Cheng, Thomas W. Sappington, Wei-Dong Pan, Xing-Fu Jiang

Entomology Publications

The geomagnetic field affects all living organisms on the Earth. In this study we investigated the developmental and behavioral effects of rearing Mythimna separata in a near-zero magnetic field (<500 nT) compared to the local geomagnetic field (approximately 50 µT). The near-zero magnetic field produced by a Helmholtz coil system significantly lengthened larval and pupal development durations, increased male longevity, and reduced pupal weight, female reproduction, and the relative expression level of the vitellogenin (Vg) gene in newly emerged females. Moreover, the near-zero magnetic field had a considerable negative effect on the mating ratio of M. separata adults. In addition, the moths in the near-zero magnetic field displayed less flight activity late in the night than those in the Earth's normal geomagnetic field, indicating that the flight rhythm of M. separata may be affected by the near-zero magnetic field. Reduction in magnetic field intensity may have negative effects on the development and flight of oriental armyworm, with consequent additional effects on its migration.

Greater Sage-Grouse And Community Responses To Strategies To Mitigate Environmental Resistance In An Anthropogenic Altered Sagebrush Landscape, Justin R. Small

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Sagebrush (Artemisia spp.) ecosystems are diverse habitats found throughout western North America. Anthropogenic disturbances has resulted in the loss of over half of the sagebrush ecosystems impacting sagebrush obligate species such as sage-grouse (Centrocercus spp.). Federal, state, and private land managers have implemented landscape scale mechanical pinyon (Pinus spp.) and juniper (Juniperus spp.; conifer) removal projects in an effort to restore functioning sagebrush communities to benefit sage-grouse. However, few studies have investigated the potential for using large-scale conifer treatments to mitigate factors impeding sage-grouse seasonal movements and space-use in anthropogenic altered landscapes.

To address this management need, I analyzed pre- ...

Invasive Plant Occurrence Across Agency Boundaries: Two Case Studies From California, Natalie Otto

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Non-native invasive species (NNIS) are a major concern confronting land managers in and surrounding protected areas such as national parks. These areas are managed by a variety of entities, all of which have different mandates, management priorities, and resources that are allocated to NNIS programs. These differences can result in ecological divergences at land boundaries and can create barriers to cooperative management. Through interviews and ecological data collection, this research addresses three topics; 1. It identifies disparities in NNIS and disturbance occurrence between jurisdictions and tests the strength of correlations between these variables; 2. It seeks to determine what role ...

Troglofauna Of Van Buren And White County: A Survey Of Four Caves In The Mideastern Cumberland Plateau, Gavin Page

Honors Theses

The Cumberland Plateau in Tennessee has the highest cave-obligate biodiversity in North America. Cave-obligate species are entirely restricted to subterranean habitat and demonstrate unique troglomorphy. These species are categorized as troglobionts. However, because of their isolated occurrences, theses species are vulnerable to a variety of disturbances. This issue is furthered in the fact that only approximately 7% of the caves in this region have been surveyed. Of these caves that have been surveyed, only a small portion were professional entomological surveys, while almost no cave has ever been extensively repeat sampled. This study involved newly sampling one cave and repeat ...

Monitoring Populations And Movement Of Bobcats (Lynx Rufus) On The Eastern Slope Of The Sierra Nevada Mountains Of California, Michael Brown

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Monitoring the spatial ecology and population densities of carnivores is critical for effective management and conservation of these populations and the ecosystems in which they exist. However, effective monitoring of carnivore populations through estimates of space use, habitat selection and densities can be difficult due to their relatively low densities and wide ranging, elusive behaviors. Bobcats (Lynx rufus) are medium sized, top-level predators which are widely distributed across North America. Quantifying space use, habitat selection and developing effective population monitoring strategies for this species will have important implications for wildlife management.

My first objective was to use telemetry data to ...

Short- And Long-Term Mechanisms For Increasing Inputs Of Phosphorus In Mountain Waterbodies Of Northeastern Utah, Usa, Jessica Scholz

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Phosphorus is an essential nutrient that allows life in water to flourish, but changes in phosphorus supplies are not well understood in remote watersheds. In mountain environments, remote watersheds contain critical high-quality water supplies and unique ecosystems, but excess phosphorus can diminish water quality by producing unfavorable aquatic species. Therefore, observed trends of increasing phosphorus concentrations in remote lakes and rivers in the US over the last two decades are a significant concern. Using the Uinta Mountains as a case study, we evaluated three different direct and indirect pathways for phosphorus increases in remote mountain watersheds that may explain observed ...

Responses Of Pacific Fishers To Habitat Changes As A Result Of Forestry Practices In Southwestern Oregon, Tessa R. Smith

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The fisher (Pekania pennanti) is a medium-sized carnivore found in mature forest stands across much of the northern United States. Although historically abundant in the west, fisher populations declined rapidly after fur trapping, extensive logging, and urban development reduced their numbers. Currently, biologists are concerned about the effects timber harvest practices have on fisher tolerance and adaptability when faced with changes to high-quality habitat stands. Tree removal and thinning of understory vegetation are frequently used to alleviate the spread of wildfires in previously dense forest stands with a potential for large-scale habitat loss; yet, a deficit of large trees and ...

Visitor Perceptions And Resource Conditions Of Campsites In Two Coastal Alaskan National Parks, Shannon T. Wesstrom

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Increasing visitation in parks and protected areas presents managers with the challenge of providing quality visitor experiences while mitigating ecological impacts from recreation. Successful management strategies often suggest determining desired conditions for visitor experiences and ecological conditions to establish thresholds. These thresholds can then be compared to existing conditions in order to determine if changes in management strategies should be made. By integrating visitor survey results with ecological assessments, this research is a unique coastal Alaskan regional analysis of the three components of a management framework: 1. Establishes visitor determined thresholds of acceptability for crowding and coastal resource conditions in ...

The Effects Of Urbanization On Insect Morphology: A Meta-Analysis, Evann L. Bailey

Honors Theses

Urbanization has been shown to create a rapid change in the environment as you move from rural areas to urban areas. It can create a multitude of effects on the environment. Some examples include, land disturbance, pollution, increasing temperatures and a disturbance in vegetation and biodiversity. Insects are useful organisms that provide maintenance and upkeep for ecosystem functioning. The rapid development of urbanization and how it is changing the environment may impact insect morphology. Measuring morphological change in organisms have been used successfully as indicators of environmental and ecological disturbance. Changes that take place in an insect’s morphology may ...

An Experiment To Test For Rapid Evolution In An Introduced Ectomycorrhizal Symbiosis, Valerie Rewa

Honors Theses

The rapid evolution of introduced ectomycorrhizal-plant partnerships is an under- explored topic that may have immense impacts on ecosystems around the world. This experiment sought to identify and quantify this evolution and its impacts on both fungal colonization as well as plant growth. I used a laboratory experiment to analyze these factors in native and exotic genotypes of Suillus cothurnatus and Pinus species. Much of the data was not able to be collected, but that which was did not support the presence of rapid evolution in the mutualistic partnership. Pine species was seen to have a significant effect on plant ...