Stable Isotope Analysis Of Busycon Sinistrum To Determine Fort Walton-Period Seasonality At St. Joseph Bay, Northwest Florida, 2012 University of South Florida
Stable Isotope Analysis Of Busycon Sinistrum To Determine Fort Walton-Period Seasonality At St. Joseph Bay, Northwest Florida, Ryan Michael Harke
USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations
ABSTRACT
Recent archaeological investigations indicate that coastal Fort Walton cultures in the St. Joseph Bay region of northwest Florida emphasized marine and estuarine foraging. These late prehistoric (A.D. 1000-1500) peoples collected fish, shellfish, and other aquatic resources. At the Richardson's Hammock site (8Gu10), radiocarbon-dated to about A.D. 1300, as at dozens of other shell middens around this salty bay, large gastropods were a major subsistence component. This adaptation is in sharp contrast with that of contemporaneous inland Fort Walton societies, who relied on maize agriculture. It is unknown whether coastal groups represent separate hunter-gatherer-fisher populations or seasonal migrations by inland …
Genetic Diversity Of Neotropical Myotis (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) With An Emphasis On South American Species, 2012 Texas Tech University
Genetic Diversity Of Neotropical Myotis (Chiroptera: Vespertilionidae) With An Emphasis On South American Species, Roxanne J. Larsen, Michelle C. Knapp, Hugh H. Genoways, Faisal Ali Anwarali Khan, Peter A. Larsen, Don E. Wilson, Robert J. Baker
University of Nebraska State Museum: Mammalogy Papers
Background: Cryptic morphological variation in the Chiropteran genus Myotis limits the understanding of species boundaries and species richness within the genus. Several authors have suggested that it is likely there are unrecognized species-level lineages of Myotis in the Neotropics. This study provides an assessment of the diversity in New World Myotis by analyzing cytochrome-b gene variation from an expansive sample ranging throughout North, Central, and South America. We provide baseline genetic data for researchers investigating phylogeographic and phylogenetic patterns of Myotis in these regions, with an emphasis on South America.
Methodology and Principal Findings: Cytochrome-b sequences were …
Eavesdropping Parasitoids Do Not Cause The Evolution Of Less Conspicuous Signaling Behavior In A Field Cricket, 2012 Indiana University - Bloomington
Eavesdropping Parasitoids Do Not Cause The Evolution Of Less Conspicuous Signaling Behavior In A Field Cricket, Oliver M. Beckers, William E. Wagner
School of Biological Sciences: Faculty Publications
Males of many species produce conspicuous mating signals to attract females, but these signals can also attract eavesdropping predators and parasites. Males are thus expected to evolve signaling behaviors that balance the sexual selection benefits and the natural selection costs. In the variable field cricket, Gryllus lineaticeps, males sing to attract females, but these songs also attract the lethal parasitoid fly Ormia ochracea. The flies use male crickets as hosts for their larvae, primarily search for hosts during a 2 h period following sunset and prefer the same song types as female crickets. We tested whether males from high-risk populations …
Ramphotyphlops Braminus (Brahminy Blindsnake): Predation, 2012 Florida Museum of Natural History
Ramphotyphlops Braminus (Brahminy Blindsnake): Predation, Louis A. Somma
Papers in Herpetology
Ramphotyphlops braminus currently has the most widespread, near worldwide, nonindigenous distribution of any snake. In Florida, USA, R. braminus is rapidly expanding its distribution.
The stomach contents of a necropsied Dasypus novemcinctus (nine-banded armadillo) found on the premises of the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services in Gaisesville in March 2011 included an intact adult R. braminus. Dasypus novemcinctus is nonindigenous in Florida. It has a primarily insectivorous diet but occasionally preys upon small vertebrates, including reptiles. This is the first record of R. braminus in the diet of D. novemcinctus.
Relative Heart Ventricle Mass And Cardiac Performance In Amphibians, 2012 Portland State University
Relative Heart Ventricle Mass And Cardiac Performance In Amphibians, Gregory Joseph Kluthe
Dissertations and Theses
This study used an in situ heart preparation to analyze the power and work of spontaneously beating hearts of four anurans (R. marina, L. catesbeianus, X. laevis, P. edulis) and three urodeles (N. maculosus, A. tigrinum, A. tridactylum) in order to elucidate the meaning of relative ventricle mass (RVM) in terms of specific cardiac performance variables. This study also tests two hypotheses: 1) the ventricles of terrestrial species (R. marina, P. edulis, A. tigrinum) of amphibians are capable of greater maximum power outputs (Pmax) compared to aquatic species (X. laevis, A. tridactylum, N. maculosus, L. catesbeianus) and, 2) …
Competition For Aphid Prey Between Different Lady Beetle Species In A Laboratory Arena, 2011 University of Tennessee
Competition For Aphid Prey Between Different Lady Beetle Species In A Laboratory Arena, Christy Leppanen, Andrei Alyokhin, Serena Gross
Andrei Alyokhin
Direct competition for aphid prey (Hemiptera: Aphididae) was evaluated between and among several lady beetle species (Coleoptera: Coccinellidae). The behavior of three native (Coccinella trifasciata, Coleomegilla maculata, and Hippodamia convergens) and four nonnative (Coccinella septempunctata, Harmonia axyridis, Hippodamia variegata, and Propylea quatuordecimpunctata) lady beetles was observed in laboratory arenas. The beetles were kept alone, paired with conspecifics or paired with heterospecifics, and presented with potato aphids (Macrosiphum euphorbiae). Harmonia axyridis was the most successful aphid predator in our study, being able to find aphids more quickly and consume more of them compared to most other lady beetle species. It was …
Allometry And Growth, 2011 Kenyon College
A Postulate For Tiger Recovery: The Case Of The Caspian Tiger, 2011 University of Oxford
A Postulate For Tiger Recovery: The Case Of The Caspian Tiger, Carlos A. Driscoll, I Chestin, H Jungius, Y Darman, E Dinerstein, J Seidensticker, J Sanderson, S Christie, S J. Luo, M Shrestha, Y Zhuravlev, O Uphyrkina, Y V. Jhala, S P. Yadav, D G. Pikunov, N Yamaguchi, D E. Wildt, J D. Smith, Marker, Philip J. Nyhus, R Tilson, D W. Macdonald, S J. O'Brien
Philip J. Nyhus
Recent genetic analysis has shown that the extinct Caspian Tiger (P. t. virgata) and the living Amur Tigers (P. t. altaica) of the Russian Far East are actually taxonomically synonymous and that Caspian and Amur groups historically formed a single population, only becoming separated within the last 200 years by human agency. A major conservation implication of this finding is that tigers of Amur stock might be reintroduced, not only back into the Koreas and China as is now proposed, but also through vast areas of Central Asia where the Caspian tiger once lived. However, under the current tiger conservation …
This Shrew Is A Jumping Mouse (Mammalia, Dipodidae): Sorex Dichrurus Rafinesque, 1833 Is A Synonym Of Zapus Hudsonius (Zimmermann, 1780), Neal Woodman
Neal Woodman
Plant Genotype, Not Nutrients, Shape Aphid Population Dynamics, 2011 University of Tennessee - Knoxville
Plant Genotype, Not Nutrients, Shape Aphid Population Dynamics, Heather E. Tran, Lara Souza, Nathan J. Sanders, Aimee T. Classen
Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects
No abstract provided.
Bycatch Of The Lake Pontchartrain Basin Inshore Shrimp Fishery And Its Effect On Two Sea Catfish Species: The Gafftopsail Catfish (Bagre Marinus) And The Hardhead Catfish (Ariopsis Felis), 2011 University of New Orleans Department of Earth and Environmental Sciences
Bycatch Of The Lake Pontchartrain Basin Inshore Shrimp Fishery And Its Effect On Two Sea Catfish Species: The Gafftopsail Catfish (Bagre Marinus) And The Hardhead Catfish (Ariopsis Felis), Scott P. Eustis
University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations
In Lake Pontchartrain Basin, commercial fishing in estuarine habitats impacts many non-target species collected as bycatch. I investigated the bycatch assemblages collected by commercial vessels and compared these to assemblages collected by typical fishery-independent methods. I compared assemblages using analysis of similarity (ANOSIM) and determined important species by weight and abundance using similarity percentages analyses (SIMPER). I also examined differences in size-class distributions by gear type using density kernel plots and Mann-Whitney U tests. The two gear types collected significantly different assemblages (ANOSIM R = 0.522, p = 0.001) and gear type explained more composition differences than other factors such …
Habitat Use And Abundance Patterns Of Sandhill Cranes In The Central Platte River Valley, Nebraska, 2003–2010, 2011 University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Habitat Use And Abundance Patterns Of Sandhill Cranes In The Central Platte River Valley, Nebraska, 2003–2010, Todd Joseph Buckley
School of Natural Resources: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research
The Central Platte River Valley (CPRV) in Nebraska is an important spring stopover area for the midcontinent population of sandhill cranes. Alterations to crop rotation and loss habitat in the CPRV pose a risk to the population. Personnel drove designated routes in the CPRV from 2003–2010 to record the presence of cranes in agricultural fields and estimate abundance. I developed and evaluated models to predict habitat use and flock sizes. Alfalfa was predicted to receive the highest use followed by corn, soybeans, winter wheat, grassland, and shrubland. Use of all habitats and flock size increased as field area increased. Flock …
The Evolution Of Lateralized Foot Use In Parrots: A Phylogenetic Approach, 2011 Macquarie University
The Evolution Of Lateralized Foot Use In Parrots: A Phylogenetic Approach, Culum Brown, Maria Magat
Sentience Collection
Cerebral lateralization refers to the division of cognitive function in either brain hemisphere and may be overtly expressed as behavioral asymmetries, such as handedness. The evolutionary history of laterality is of considerable interest due to its close link with the development of human language. Although considerable research effort has aimed at the proximate explanations of cerebral lateralization, considerably less attention has been paid to ultimate explanations. The extent to which laterality is constrained by phylogeny or shaped by ecological forces through natural selection has received little attention. Here, the foot preference of 23 species of Australian parrots was examined to …
Seed Production With Insect Herbivory And Fungal Occurrence For The Rare Penstemon Haydenii, 2011 University of Nebraska - Lincoln
Seed Production With Insect Herbivory And Fungal Occurrence For The Rare Penstemon Haydenii, Kay L Kottas, James Stubbendieck, Erin E. Blankenship, Jay B. Fitzgerald
Transactions of the Nebraska Academy of Sciences and Affiliated Societies
We quantified seed production and viability, floral herbivory and fungal infection on blowout penstemon (Penstemon haydenii S. Watson), an endangered species of the Nebraska Sandhills, USA, in order to determine the potential for perpetuation of this, and possibly other short-lived, rare perennials of fragmented habitats. Over three years, the number of seeds per infructescence averaged 518 (SE 29.01). Plants produced an average of 1398 seeds. Seed viability of 38% reduced reproductive potential to 531 viable seeds per plant. Plants in multiple blowout sites in two counties were assigned to one of four treatments: insecticide, fungicide, both, or neither (control). …
Temporal Comparisons Of Avifauna In Enashiva Nature Refuge, Tanzania An Examination Of Species Richness And Abundance, The Effects Of The Onset Of The Short Rainy Season, And The Migrant Communities Present, 2011 SIT Study Abroad
Temporal Comparisons Of Avifauna In Enashiva Nature Refuge, Tanzania An Examination Of Species Richness And Abundance, The Effects Of The Onset Of The Short Rainy Season, And The Migrant Communities Present, Taran Catania
Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection
This study examined avian species richness, abundance, distribution, and diversity in relation to seasonal and temporal changes in Enashiva Nature Refuge, Tanzania. Data was collected in using point-counts along pre-established transects in four distinct habitats – wooded grassland, grassland, woodland, and riverine – over an 18-day period from November 6 to November 23, 2011. Transects were comprised of five point-count spots, at which data on avian species an abundance was collected for 30 minutes each. Data was compared to two previous studies conducted in November 2009 and April 2011 with similar methodologies over comparable time frames. Descriptive statistics, community similarity, …
Group Size And Nest Spacing Affect Buggy Creek Virus (Togaviridae: Alphavirus) Infection In Nestling House Sparrows, 2011 University of Tulsa
Group Size And Nest Spacing Affect Buggy Creek Virus (Togaviridae: Alphavirus) Infection In Nestling House Sparrows, Valerie A. Brown, Charles R. Brown
Papers in Ornithology
The transmission of parasites and pathogens among vertebrates often depends on host population size, host species diversity, and the extent of crowding among potential hosts, but little is known about how these variables apply to most vector-borne pathogens such as the arboviruses (arthropod-borne viruses). Buggy Creek virus (BCRV; Togaviridae: Alphavirus) is an RNA arbovirus transmitted by the swallow bug (Oeciacus vicarius) to the cliff swallow (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota) and the introduced house sparrow (Passer domesticus) that has recently invaded swallow nesting colonies. The virus has little impact on cliff swallows, but house sparrows are seriously …
Classifying And Mapping Diversity In A Species-Poor System: The Mangrove Meta-Community Of Laguna Chacahua National Park, Oaxaca, Mexico, 2011 California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo
Classifying And Mapping Diversity In A Species-Poor System: The Mangrove Meta-Community Of Laguna Chacahua National Park, Oaxaca, Mexico, Elizabeth Kay Weisgerber
Master's Theses
ABSTRACT
Classifying and Mapping Diversity in a Species-Poor System: the mangrove meta-community of Laguna Chacahua National Park, Oaxaca, Mexico
by
Elizabeth Kay Weisgerber
Both field transects and imagery grid plots were analyzed with the goal of creating a community classification map for the mangrove forest of Parque Nacional Lagunas de Chacahua. In total, data was collected in 49 sites throughout the park, recording measures such as DBH, basal area, estimated dominance, frequency, cover and relative dominance. Field locations were marked and georeferenced with a GPS and grid plots overlaid on satellite imagery of the park were generated via a random …
Metabolism And Cryo-Sensitivity Of Domestic Cat (Felis Catus) And Cheetah (Acinonyx Jubatus) Spermatozoa, 2011 University of New Orleans
Metabolism And Cryo-Sensitivity Of Domestic Cat (Felis Catus) And Cheetah (Acinonyx Jubatus) Spermatozoa, Kimberly Terrell
University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations
Teratospermia (ejaculation of ≥ 60% structurally abnormal spermatozoa) is prevalent among felids facing extinction risk, including the cheetah. This trait also occurs in certain domestic cat populations, providing a valuable research model. Multiple components of sperm function are disrupted in teratospermic cats, and even structurally normal spermatozoa from these ejaculates may be functionally compromised. Teratospermic ejaculates are highly sensitive to damage during cryopreservation, limiting the success of genome resource banking programs for species conservation. Although both teratospermia and cryopreservation are linked to disruptions in multiple energy-dependent sperm processes, the metabolism of these cells has not been investigated. This project explored …
Mycorrhizal Colonization Of Native Salt Marsh Plants On Mississippi's Gulf Coast And The Effects Of Commercial Mycorrhizal Inoculants On Nursery-Grown Plants, 2011 University of Southern Mississippi
Mycorrhizal Colonization Of Native Salt Marsh Plants On Mississippi's Gulf Coast And The Effects Of Commercial Mycorrhizal Inoculants On Nursery-Grown Plants, Kathryn Rondot Mcbride
Master's Theses
Salt marshes are important economically and ecologically to the Gulf Coast and other coasts worldwide. Due to human activities, many coastal salt marshes have been degraded or destroyed. Restoration efforts, through the replacement or addition of naturally occurring salt marsh plants, are taking place worldwide. Most restoration plants are raised in nurseries and are not ready for transfer to restoration sites for eight or nine months. Once the plants are at the restoration site many die due to transplant stress. Arbuscular Mycorrhizal Fungi (AMF) may be able to shorten the time the restoration plants need to stay in the nursery …
An Analytical Study Of Air-Sea Co2 Gas Exchange In The Northwest Mississippi Bight Region, 2011 University of Southern Mississippi
An Analytical Study Of Air-Sea Co2 Gas Exchange In The Northwest Mississippi Bight Region, Andrea Kathryn Braatz
Master's Theses
With the continued increase of carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, researchers are concerned with accumulation of excess CO2 within the atmosphere. The ocean is an important sink for the drawdown of atmospheric CO2 concentrations. Due to high spatial and temporal variability, CO2 fluxes in the coastal ocean are not as well characterized as those for the open ocean. More specifically, data for the northern Gulf of Mexico (GOM) coastal region is lacking. A time series analysis of air-sea CO2 flux rates from May through December 2009 was conducted using data collected by The University of Southern Mississippi’s Central Gulf Ocean Observing …