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Effects of forest fragmentation on reproductive effort and productivity of Indigo buntings (Passerina cyanea)
(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2005)
and offspring quality, I measured maternal condition and reproductive output of Indigo Buntings breeding in a fragmented and a contiguously forested landscape in Missouri. Renesting females had lower body condition than those that nested once successfully...
Brassicales to Brassica : integrating phylogenomics and population genomics
(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2020)
populations. Using this system of diversity within domesticated B. oleracea, I examined patterns of relationships among morphotypes, including signals of hybridization and introgression. Brassica oleracea vegetable crops are frequently regarded as superfoods...
Nectar in nicotiana : pollinator associations, sources of variation, and evolutionary consequences
(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2007)
significant heritable component was detected for nectar volume and energy, as well as corolla tube length, in an experimental population of Nicotiana alata. Although phenotypic correlations were significant for all measured traits, only two correlations had a...
The role of terrrestrial habitat in the population dynamics and conservation of pond-breeding amphibians
(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2007)
populations in Missouri.The results of my dissertation research indicate that the quantity and quality of terrestrial habitat available to pond-breeding amphibians can have substantial population level consequences including increased extinction probabilities...
Seasonality and elevational migration in an Andean bird community
(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2010)
flock to document the phenology and elevational movements of birds along a 2.7 km elevational gradient in Manu National Park, southeastern Peru. Breeding for most species started with the onset of the rainy season in September and peaked in November...
The effects of metal contamination on larval white sturgeon in the upper Columbia River
(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2018)
swimming performance, however, was not affected by copper exposure. While not directly lethal, these alterations in behavior would impair a sturgeon's ability to locate, capture, and consume prey, thus impacting survival. In chapter 2, I evaluated...
Celsr1 suppresses WNT5A-mediated chemoattraction to prevent incorrect rostral migration of facial branchiomotor neurons
(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2022)
, suggesting that the Wnt5a-mediated chemoattraction of FBM neurons is dependent on Wnt5a-Dvl2 signaling. Lastly, our model predicts that rostral migration of FBM neurons should be enhanced in Celsr1 mutants overexpressing Wnt5a in r3. As expected, when a Wnt5a...
Conservation genetics of conflict in the Asian elephant, Elephas maximus
(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2021)
The Asian elephant (Elephas maximus) is an endangered species whose distribution spans 13 countries in south, southeast, and insular Asia. The primary threats to the survival of this species include direct conflict, primarily ...
Behavioral choice and demographic consequences of wood frog habitat selection in response to land use
(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2007)
, Missouri, and South Carolina are determining the effects of timber harvest on the persistence of amphibian populations. The purpose of my dissertation research was to define adult wood frog nonbreeding habitat in continuous oak-hickory forest...
A multi-scale investigation of ecologically relevant effects of agricultural runoff on amphibians
(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2008)
Modification of landscapes for agricultural production can introduce agrochemicals into surface waters and degrade aquatic habitats used by many amphibians for breeding and larval development. Although many ecotoxicological ...
Tales of an 'invisible' life stage : survival and physiology among terrestrial juvenile ambystomatid salamanders
(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2019)
of the many amphibian species for which stage-specific data are lacking. Next, I reared larvae of five species (A. annulatum, A. maculatum, A. opacum, A. talpoideum, and A. texanum) from populations along an ~200 km latitudinal gradient in Missouri, USA...
Raptor and wading bird migration in Veracruz, Mexico : spatial and temporal dynamics, flight performance, and monitoring applications
(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2007)
(Cathartes aura), Mississippi Kite (Ictinia mississippiensis), Broad-winged Hawk (Buteo platypterus), and Swainson's Hawk (B. swainsoni). The migration bottleneck is a result of two features of the regional landscape. Flights are limited to the east...
Coupling, membrane conductance, and ion channel mRNA profiles in the establishment and maintenance of network activity in the crustacean cardiac ganglion
(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2021)
for unambiguous identification of cells based on anatomy or neuronal projections. We use this to evaluate the efficacy of cluster estimation procedures, clustering methods, and classification algorithms to determine the number of cell types present, group like...
Effects of prescribed fire and timber harvest on terrestrial salamander abundance, behavior, and microhabitat use
(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2014)
surveys for three years and used a statistical modeling approach that accounted for the tendency of terrestrial salamanders to be belowground and unavailable for surveys. I found that terrestrial salamander density at our Missouri Ozark study site ranged...
Phylogenomics of orchids and their mycorrhizal fungi : trees, diversity, and the pursuit of symbiosis
(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2019)
[ACCESS RESTRICTED TO THE UNIVERSITY OF MISSOURI AT REQUEST OF AUTHOR.] Phylogenetic trees show us how organisms are related and provide frameworks for studying and testing evolutionary hypotheses. To better understand the evolution of orchids...
Amphibian metamorphosis and juvenile terrestrial performance following chronic cadmium exposure in the aquatic environment
(University of Missouri--Columbia, 2005)
the physiological processes and body condition of amphibians and other taxa. In the first experiment, southern leopard frog and American toad tadpoles were reared separately in cattle tank mesocosms (1325-L volume) that had been dosed once at 0, 5, 18, 60, or 200...