RSS 1.0Theses and Dissertations-Biology
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Responses of Aquatic Benthic Macroinvertebrate Communities to a Large Flow Pulse in the Guadalupe, San Antonio and Brazos River Basins, Texas
(2018-11-20)Riverine benthic macroinvertebrates (BMI) communities are regulated, in part, by the dynamic character of the river’s flow regime. Purpose of this study was to assess the influence of a flow regime component (i.e., large ... -
Population structure and gene flow in the Louisiana Iris species complex
(2018-11-29)Identifying the distribution of genetic variation and gene flow is important for understanding how evolutionary dynamics have shaped the genetic structuring of populations undergoing divergence. Natural selection and genetic ... -
Exploring Latino Parent Attitudes Toward Science, Involvement in Science, and Perceptions of Value and Comfort of Family Science Events
(2018-11-27)Diversity within teams and organizations guards against groupthink and overconfidence and improves their ability to problem solve and make predictions. Even though efforts have been made to increase diversity within the ... -
Mercury Concentrations in Fish from the Guadalupe River, Texas: Relationships with Body Length and Trophic Position
(2018-11-27)Mercury (Hg) is known to bioaccumulate over time in freshwater fish and biomagnify up freshwater food webs, so top predatory fish have the highest Hg body burden. Within Texas, Hg studies in freshwater fish have primarily ... -
A Survey of Ant-Associated Fungal Diversity in Canopy Bromeliads from the Ecuadorian Amazon
(2018-11-20)No abstract prepared. -
Investigating the Winter Nocturnal Nest Box Use of the Black-crested Titmouse (Baeolophus atricristatus)
(2018-11-26)Nest boxes are used during the breeding season by many cavity-nesting birds; however, less is known about the use of nest boxes as sites for roosting during the winter non-breeding season. The Black-crested Titmouse ... -
Mechanisms of Escherichia coli and Vibrio cholerae fitness when grown in co-culture
(11/22/2016)Vibrio cholerae is a gram negative bacillus that possesses a single flagellum and is commonly known to have two toxigenic strains: serogroups O1 and O139; both are causes of epidemics. V. cholerae normally lives in brackish ... -
Detectability Affects The Performance of Survey Methods - A Comparison of Sampling Methods of Freshwater Mussels in Central Texas
(11/8/2018)Designing effective surveys for freshwater mussels (Unionidae) is a challenge, because they are spatially clustered and often found in low densities. The objective of this study was to examine how the effectiveness of three ... -
Interspecific Spacing between Harvester Ant (Pogonomyrmex barbatus) and Red Imported Fire Ant (Solenopsis invicta) Colonies along the Invasion Gradient in Texas
(9/27/2018)Invasive species can be devastating to ecosystems and their impacts on native species are innumerable. The red imported fire ant (Solenopsis invicta) invasion is a threat to many native species and is one hypothesized ... -
Effects of urbanization on stress response of Texas Eurycea salamanders
(4/29/2016)No abstract prepared. -
Fitness of Escherichia coli when in Mixed Culture with Enterococcus faecalis
(7/7/2016)Escherichia coli (E. coli) coexists with many different species, such as Enterococcus faecalis (E. faecalis), in the gastrointestinal tract of many animals. Under normal circumstances, the two bacteria live alongside each ... -
Histone variant H2A.Z substitution mediated by the SWR1-like complex is a novel transcriptional regulatory mechanism controlling defense genes and immunity in plants
(7/21/2016)Plants have evolved a complex immune system as a result of an evolutionary arms race between the host and various pathogens. One of the most vigorous immune responses in plants involves resistance (R) proteins, which detect ... -
Effects of Red Imported Fire Ants (Solenopsis invicta) on Juvenile Houston Toads (Bufo houstonensis) in a Coastal Prairie Grassland
(7/25/2016)The Houston toad (Bufo houstonensis) was first described in 1953 in Houston, Texas, but has since been extirpated from the area. Houston toad populations have been in a nearly continuous decline across their known distribution ... -
Ecological Factors of Rodent Assemblage Structure Affecting Hantavirus Prevalence at Varying Spatial Scales
(6/30/2017)Zoonotic pathogens are the dominant cause of novel and reemerging infectious diseases. Hantaviruses (family Bunyaviridae) and their associated human diseases occur globally and differ according to their geographic distribution ... -
An investigation of relationships between student acceptance of evolution, tree-thinking, and eye movement among different instructional interventions
(4/12/2017)Evolution is the unifying theme for the field of biology and is one of the most well developed and supported scientific theories to date. Although overwhelming evidence exists supporting evolution, evolution is considered ... -
Using Data Mining Techniques to Predict Groundwater Levels: A Case Study of the Edwards Aquifer
(4/20/2017)No abstract prepared. -
Optic Nerve of Zebrafish (Danio rerio): An Animal Model for Human Aging
(4/25/2017)The optic nerve is the cranial nerve that sends messages from the eyes to the brain and is part of the central nervous system (CNS). Astrocytes help maintain neuronal health within the CNS. In humans, senescence of astrocytes ... -
Salmonellae in the intestine of Hypostomus plecostomus in the San Marcos River
(7/25/2016)Heavy rainfall events have been associated with outbreaks of many waterborne diseases including salmonellosis. Salmonellosis is caused by members of the genus Salmonella that can enter water systems through sewage ... -
Inhibition of quorum signalling and biofilm formation in Chromobacterium violaceum in the presence of cadmium, cobalt and nickel divalent cations
(4/13/2016)Bacteria are single celled organisms capable of acting as a single unit by sensing and responding to population density via a phenomenon called quorum signaling. Quorum signaling regulates a variety of phenotypes including ... -
Exploring Tradeoffs of Alternative Life History Strategies in Two Texas Butterfly Species
(4/10/2018)The evolution of gregarious feeding is an intriguing problem in ecology. It occurs in many phytophagous insects and typically coincides with eggs lain in large clutches. Despite many benefits to gregarious feeding, including ...
