Acton Lake is a reservoir in Hueston Woods State Park that was created in 1956 by the damming of Four-Mile Creek. Early on, high levels of erosion and agricultural runoff contributed to high sedimentation rates. In 1992, the USDA began encouraging farmers in the Acton Lake watershed to adopt conservation tillage. The goal of this […]
B40: Using biologging data from turtles to assess repeatability and consistency in physiological behaviors
Animals exhibit a wide range of behaviors that can be influenced by their fitness, niche, energy costs, physiology, and general responses to environmental stimuli. This behavioral variation, commonly referred to as personality, is defined as consistent differences in behavior between individuals over time. For this study, we decided to monitor behavior using several biologging devices […]
B38: Genetic Variability and Lyme Disease Infection in the White-Footed Mouse in Northern Michigan
The lower peninsula of Michigan is inhabited by two species of closely related white-footed deer mice, Peromyscus leucopus and Peromyscus maniculatus. Both of these species are hosts for the deer tick, Ixodes scapularis which acts as the vector for B. burgdorferi infection. However, it’s been determined that P. leucopus is the main reservoir host for […]
B37: Miami Middletown Greenhouse Pathogen Identification and Management
Houseplants improve our mental and physical well-being, productivity, and enhance the overall appearance of a space. Unfortunately foliage plants are often attacked by pests and pathogens which can negatively impact their health and appearance. As a Botany major and student worker on the Middletown campus, I began taking care of the plant maintenance in the […]
B33: MBI475: Resilience of Antarctic Lake Algae-Bacteria Interactions to a Salinity Gradient
Microbial Ecology explores the way microbes interact with their environment, and the greater impact it has on their ecosystems both local & global. Aquatic ecosystems are dependent on primary production by algae to fix carbon, which contributes to over 50% of CO2 fixation globally. This is especially the case for microbial communities found within Antarctic […]
B32: MBI 475: Influence of Extreme Environmental Conditions on Antarctic Lake Algae
There are a multitude of factors which affect both the growth and distribution of marine microbial environments, such as nutrient availability, salinity levels, temperature, and light. In Antarctic marine environments, microbes are exposed to extreme conditions, which further affect the community composition. In this project, we have analyzed the effect that different salt concentrations have […]
B31: Visualizing Gene Expression to Understand Ocular Development and Regeneration
The embryonic eye is composed of a number of ectoderm-derived structures that ultimately give rise to a diverse array of cell types and complex tissues. Extensive cell-cell communication and precisely coordinated molecular events are necessary to differentiate the associated cell types, including within the retina. Embryonic days 4 and 5 of chicken development encompass a […]
B34: Potential Drivers of Decadal Bluegill Patterns in Turbid Reservoirs
Larval fish population dynamics are influenced by biotic and abiotic factors. Larval stages of planktivorous fish temporally overlap in aquatic systems. In midwestern reservoirs in the USA, larval stages of gizzard shad (Dorosoma cepedianum) and bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) temporally overlap in early-mid summer. Larval gizzard shad hatch earlier (early May) than bluegill (June) and can […]
B36: Modeling Habitat Suitability for the Endangered Species, Equus Grevy (Grevy’s Zebra)
Species endangerment is a prominent, yet complex threat to our ecosystems because no two species are the same. Thus, a unique approach is required to effectively conserve each species. These approaches require a range of detailed information to ensure that conservation efforts are achievable without expending don’t cause inadvertent effects on the species health, relationships, […]