Population Biology Commons^™

Harpy Eagle (Harpia Harpyja) Conservation: Juvenile Behavior And Diet At A Nest Near Pijibasal, Darien, Hannah Rodgers

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

The Harpy Eagle (Harpia harpyja), the largest and most powerful bird of prey in the Americas, is declining throughout its range in Neotropical forests. Hunting and deforestation threaten populations in the most important remaining eagle habitat in Central America, the Darien province of Panama. These eagles may have the longest postfledging juvenile dependency of any raptor, though juvenile behavior during this period is poorly studied. This study monitored an 11-month-old juvenile for 7 days at a nest near the indigenous community of Pijibasal in order to study behavior and diet. Researchers recorded the juvenile’s location and behavior, studied prey remains …

Uncommon/Rare Avian Species Decline And Extirpation In Nested Assemblages Of Northeastern Illinois Wetlands, James M. Mcaley

All Capstone Projects

Baisa found that avian assemblages are highly nested in palustrine emergent wetlands in northeastern Illinois. He measured nestedness by constructing a binary matrix of species presence and absence across sites. Nestedness was also quantified using the Mann-Whitney U-test in his study.

The goal of this project was to sample the wetlands as Baisa had done in his study. By doing so, we will have 2 sampling events, approximately 10 years apart. Nestedness of the wetland communities will be checked, and data compared to that of Baisa. Emergent wetlands in northeastern Illinois were found by Baisa to contain highly nested avian …

Cedar Waxwings, Michael L. Avery, Anthony G. Duffiney

Wildlife Damage Management Technical Series

Prevention and control of cedar waxwing (Bombycilla cedrorum) damage to small fruits such as blueberry, cherry, and strawberry is vexing to growers in many parts of the United States. Cedar waxwings (Figure 1) travel in flocks and descend in large numbers on berry crops, especially during winter and migration. In short feeding bouts, waxwings eat, peck, or knock substantial amounts of fruit from the plants. These frugivores are difficult to discourage once they become established at a given location. Harassment early and often using pyrotechnics or other sudden noisemakers can help prevent flocks from being established. The most effective preventative …

Rabbit Control: Bait Stations, Department Of Primary Industries And Regional Development, Western Australia

Biosecurity factsheets

This factsheet provides information on using bait stations for rabbit control.

Biological control agents such as the myxoma virus (myxomatosis), and rabbit haemorraghic disease virus (RHDV) or rabbit calicivirus disease, will not provide ‘magic bullets’ for reducing the impact of rabbits on agricultural production and the environment. Biological agents are more effective when they form part of an integrated approach to rabbit control. An integrated approach should use all available control options, including biological control, the use of vertebrate pesticides, shooting, and trapping programs. Control programs are most effective when they include the greatest number of properties possible (that is, …

A Novel Qtl Associated With Dwarf Bunt Resistance In Idaho 444 Winter Wheat, Jianli Chen, Mary J. Guttieri, Junli Zhang, David Hole, Edward Souza, Blair Goates

Green Canyon Environmental Research Area, Logan Utah

Dwarf bunt [Tilletia controversa J.G. Kühn [as ‘contraversa’], in Rabenhorst, Hedwigia 13: 188 (1874)] is a destructive disease of wheat (Triticum aestivum L.) that reduces grain yield and quality. A number of distinct genes conferring resistance to dwarf bunt have been used by breeding programs for nearly 100 years. However, few markers were identified that can be used in selection of dwarf bunt resistance. A recombinant inbred line (RIL) population derived from the bunt-resistant germplasm, Idaho 444 (IDO444), and the susceptible cultivar, Rio Blanco, was evaluated for phenotypic reaction to dwarf bunt inoculation in four trials in …

Under Pressure: Cetaceans And Fisheries Co-Occurrence Off The Coasts Of Ghana And Côte D’Ivoire (Gulf Of Guinea), Marijke N. De Boer, James T. Saulino, Koen Van Waerebeek, Geert Aarts

Anthropogenics and Population Decline Collection

Within the Gulf of Guinea high levels of fisheries-related cetacean mortality (bycatch and direct-capture) has been documented. For locally rare species such removals could potentially lead to significant population level effects. However, information on the cetacean abundance and distribution is scarce. Similarly, it remains largely unreported where fishing fleets operate offshore. A cetacean survey took place during geophysical surveys (2013–2014) along the coasts of Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire. This provided a unique opportunity to study both offshore cetacean and fishing communities. Due to large group-sizes, melon-headed whales were the most abundant (0.34 animals km−1) followed by Fraser’s dolphins and short-finned …

The Utilization Of Aquatic Bushmeat From Small Cetaceans And Manatees In South America And West Africa, A. Mel Cosentino, Sue Fisher

Anthropogenics and Population Decline Collection

Aquatic bushmeat can be defined as the products derived from wild aquatic megafauna (e.g., marine mammals) that are used for human consumption and non-food purposes, including traditional medicine. It is obtained through illegal or unregulated hunts as well as from stranded (dead or alive) and bycaught animals. In most South American and West African countries aquatic mammals are or have been taken for bushmeat, including 33 small cetaceans and all three manatee species. Of these, two cetacean species are listed in the IUCN red list as “near threatened,” and one as “vulnerable,” as are all manatee species. Additionally, 22 cetacean …

Population Characteristics Of Human-Commensal Rodents Present In Households From Mérida, Yucatán, México, Jesús Alonso Panti-May, Silvia F. Hernández-Betancourt, Marco A. Torres-Castro, Carlos Machaín-Williams, Nohemi Cigarroa-Toledo, Lorenzo Sodá, Gabriela López-Manzanero, Josué R. Meza-Sulú, Victor M. Vidal-Martínez

MANTER: Journal of Parasite Biodiversity

Anthropocommensal rodents live in close proximity to humans in many habitats around the world. They are a threat to public health because of the pathogens they carry. Recent studies in Mérida, Yucatán, México, have shown that commensal rodents harbor potential zoonotic pathogens such as bacteria, helminths, and viruses. In this study, we describe reproductive and demographic parameters of house mice and black rats present in households from Mérida, Yucatán, México, a municipality located in a tropical region in southern México. Rodents were trapped in 142 households within the municipality of Mérida from 2011 to 2014. A total of 832 rodents …

Rapid Museum, Gary Barwin

The Goose

Poetry by Gary Barwin

The International Whaling Commission—Beyond Whaling, Andrew J. Wright, Mark P. Simmonds, Barbara Galletti Vernazzani

Wildlife Population Management Collection

Since its establishment in 1946 as the international body intended to manage whaling, the International Whaling Commission (IWC) has expanded its areas of interest to ensure the wider conservation of whales. Several key conservation topics have been taken forward under its auspices including climate change, chemical and noise pollution, marine debris and whale watching. Work on each of these topics at the IWC has grown substantially since the 1990s and remains ongoing. Important developments were the establishment of the Standing Working Group on Environmental Concerns in 1996 and the IWC’s Conservation Committee in 2003. Trying to address this diverse set …

Does The Seal Licensing System In Scotland Have A Negative Impact On Seal Welfare?, Laetitia Nunny, Fritha Langford, Mark P. Simmonds

Wildlife Population Management Collection

This study examined the licensing system that permits seal shooting in Scotland, which was established under Part 6 Conservation of Seals of the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010. Four approaches were used: data were collated and analyzed from both the Scottish Government and Scottish Marine Animal Stranding Scheme; a survey was sent to current license holders and informal interviews were conducted with key stakeholder types. Between February 2011 and the end of October 2015, 1229 gray seals, and 275 common seals were reported shot under license to the Scottish Government. The numbers of seals reported as shot has reduced year-on-year since …

Population Dynamics And Genetic Differentiation Of The Threatened Freshwater Mussel Species Fusconaia Askewi, Fusconaia Lananensis, And Pleurobema Riddellii, Edith D. Plants-Paris

Biology Theses

North America has the most diverse freshwater mussel fauna in the world with approximately 300 species; unfortunately, extinction rates for freshwater mussels rivals the rates of many other groups of organisms. Population-level natural life history data is essential in the management of species of conservation concern, yet basic information about freshwater mussel life-history and demographic traits are unknown for many species. To further complicate matters, taxonomic uncertainty exists among some members of the group. The work detailed herein had two goals: to gain further understanding of the taxonomic relationship between Fusconaia lananensis and F. askewi by sequencing genes that had …

Theory Of Inclusive Fitness, David C. Queller

Biology Faculty Research

A review of Social Evolution and Inclusive Fitness Theory: An Introduction. By James A. R. Marshall. Princeton (New Jersey): Princeton University Press. $39.95. xix + 195 p.; ill.; index. ISBN: 978-0-691-16156-3. 2015.

Blackbirds, Richard A. Dolbeer, George M. Linz

Wildlife Damage Management Technical Series

The term blackbird loosely refers to a diverse group of about 10 species of North American birds that belong to the avian family Icteridae. The most common species include: Red-winged blackbird (Agelaius phoeniceus) Common grackle (Quiscalus quiscula) Great-tailed grackle (Quiscalus mexicanus) Brown-headed cowbird (Molothrus ater) Yellow-headed blackbird (Xanthocephalus xanthocephalus) Brewer’s blackbird (Euphagus cyanocephalus) Rusty blackbird (Euphagus carolinus) In addition to blackbirds, this family includes orioles, meadowlarks, and bobolinks.

Human-Wildlife Conflicts 1 Damage Identification 3 Management Methods 4 Economics 7 Species Overview 8 Legal Status 11 Glossary …

Double-Crested Cormorants, Brian S. Dorr, Kristi L. Sullivan, Paul D. Curtis, Richard Chipman, Russell D. Mccullough

Wildlife Damage Management Technical Series

The history of conflict between double-crested cormorants (Figure 1) and human interest in fisheries is long and convoluted. Following a low point in the 1970s, populations of cormorants expanded in North America, as did concerns about impacts on fisheries. By the late 1990s, natural resource agencies in 27 states reported losses of free-ranging fish stocks to cormorants. Agencies in 10 states, ranging from the Southwest to the Northeast, considered cormorant predation to be of moderate to major concern to fishery management.

Overall, double-crested cormorants are not major consumers of commercial and sportfish species. However, exceptions have been recorded at specific …

Bird Dispersal Techniques, Thomas W. Seamans, Allen L. Gosser

Wildlife Damage Management Technical Series

Conflicts between humans and birds likely have existed since agricultural practices began. Paintings from ancient Greek, Egyptian, and Roman civilizations depict birds attacking crops. In Great Britain, recording of efforts at reducing bird damage began in the 1400s, with books on bird control written in the 1600s. Even so, the problem persists. Avian damage to crops remains an issue today, but we also are concerned with damage to homes, businesses, and aircraft, and the possibility of disease transmission from birds to humans or livestock. Successful dispersal techniques should capitalize on bird sensory capabilities. If birds cannot perceive the dispersal technique, …

Geese, Ducks And Coots, John L. Cummings

Wildlife Damage Management Technical Series

Canada geese, snow geese, ducks, and American coots all have been implicated in agricultural crop and turf damage. Canada geese and snow geese that graze on winter wheat and rye crops can reduce subsequent grain and vegetative yields. Canada geese also cause serious damage to sprouting soybeans in spring and to standing cornfields in the autumn. The most common damage to agricultural resources associated with geese results from consumption of crops. Other impacts involve unacceptable accumulations of feces in pastures, trampling of emerging crops, and increased erosion and runoff from fields where the cover crop has been grazed. Canada geese …

Development Of Genomic Resources For The Evaluation Of Red Snapper, An Emerging Species Candidate For Marine Aquaculture And Stock Enhancement, Adrienne Elise Norrell

Master's Theses

The northern red snapper (Lutjanus campechanus) is a highly targeted reef fish candidate for marine aquaculture and stock enhancement in the southern United States. This work aimed to develop genomic resources for the genetic management of aquaculture programs and to investigate population structure using high-throughput sequencing technologies. Eighty-four new microsatellite markers were developed through screening of Illumina paired-end sequencing reads. Microsatellite loci and Single Nucleotide Polymorphisms (SNPs) generated through Restriction Site Associated DNA (RAD) sequencing were assayed in 5 outbred full-sib families to construct a high-density linkage map of the red snapper genome. The map consists of 7,964 …

Development Of An In Silico Kir Genotyping Algorithm And Its Application To Population And Cancer Immunogenetic Analyses, Howard Rosoff

Dissertations and Theses (Open Access)

Gene content determination and variant calling in the complex KIR genomic region are useful for immune system function analysis, pathogenesis and disease risk factor elucidation, immunotherapy development, evolutionary investigations, and human migration modeling. Sequence-specific oligonucleotide and sequence-specific primer PCR methods are the de facto standards for KIR presence/absence identification, but the current platforms are unsuitable for SNP calling, impractical for KIR typing large cohorts of DNA samples, and inapplicable for typing repositories in which sequence data, but not cells or cell analytes, are available. Alternative typing methods, such as in silico sequence-based typing, can address the problems associated with amplicon-based …

The Effectiveness Of Periodically-Harvested Closures In Meeting Ecological And Socioeconomic Objectives, Paul G. Carvalho

Master's Theses

Periodically-harvested fisheries closures (PHCs) are a widespread form of community-based marine spatial management used throughout the Indo-Pacific that also is currently being intensively advocated by conservation organizations for supporting productive fisheries and healthy marine ecosystems. However, local implementation of PHCs has historically been designed to support occasional and efficient exploitation of fish stocks, and not necessarily sustainable fisheries yields and stock conservation. The efficacy of PHCs for achieving their historical cultural objectives of periodicity and efficiency of harvest, simultaneously with achieving contemporary fisheries objectives of fisheries productivity and conservation is undetermined. As a result, the utility of PHCs for supporting …