Browsing by Subject "Fecundity"
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Item Open Access Evolution of mating systems in Sphagnum peatmosses(2013) Johnson, Matthew G.Bryophytes, by their haploid dominant life cycle, possess several unique qualities ideal for study of mating patterns. In particular, the possibility of intragametophytic selfing in some species, and the vegetative propagation of gametes allow for a unique window into the haploid stage that is intractable in other groups. Despite these advantages, there have been relatively few studies on mating patterns bryophytes in natural populations. Sphagnum (peatmoss) is an excellent case study in the interactions between sexual condition, ecology, and mating patterns. In the first Chapter, we use microsatellites to characterize the genetic diversity and mating patterns in fourteen species of Sphagnum, diverse in sexual condition (separate vs combined sexes in the haploid stage) and ecology (microhabitat variance along the water table). We find that genetic diversity and mating patterns are related only in species with separate sexes, that sexual condition and ecology have interacting effects on inbreeding coefficients, and that inbreeding depression is not a common phenomenon in Sphagnum. In the second Chapter, we conduct an intensive survey of one population of Sphagnum macrophyllum, to detect whether variance in haploid fecundity and mating success is related to diploid fitness. We find a relationship between mating success and fecundity (a signal of sexual selection), and fitness of the diploid generation is connected to the parentage of the haploid generation. Finally, in Chapter 3 we use phylogenetic comparative methods to track the phylogenetic signal in microhabitat preference in Sphagnum. We find extremely fast rates of evolution along the micronutrient gradient, but high phylogenetic signal along a hydrological gradient. Given that Sphagnum species living high above the water table have reduced water availability, phylogenetic signal in the hydrological gradient has macroevolutionary implications for mating systems in Sphagnum.
Item Open Access Life History Parameters and Social Associations of Female Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops Truncatus) in North Carolina, USA(2008-04-25) Thayer, Victoria GravesIn this study, I describe the seasonality of reproduction in bottlenose dolphins by examining data from stranded animals, photographic surveys and focal follows. I examined inter-birth intervals from focal follows of known female dolphins. I found bottlenose dolphins that frequent the coastal waters of North Carolina to be comprised of at least two populations; one with a primarily spring birthing peak and a presumed second (or second and third) with two smaller birthing peaks in the fall and winter. These animals are reproducing at 2-3 year inter-birth intervals, which are shorter than bottlenose dolphin inter-birth intervals in the Moray Firth, Scotland, Shark Bay, Australia, or Sarasota Bay, FL. A decrease in reproductive intervals can indicate a density-dependent response to an anthropogenic disturbance or a natural change. Association patterns between and among these known females revealed relationships that have persisted for more than a decade. Most association patterns of the female dolphins in this area are long-term casual acquaintances which are evident in the fission-fusion grouping pattern, and individuals are not highly gregarious. Females appear to associate with most other females in the local area and do not form bands, as defined by researchers in Sarasota, FL (Wells et al. 1987). However, females do exhibit preferred associates, with whom they associate, regardless of reproductive state. Associations of females with young of the year were slightly stronger than associations between females with different aged calves, except for preferred associates. Future work will include genetic research on some of these known females, and continued study of the life and reproductive histories of these known females and their offspring.Item Open Access North American tree migration paced by fecundity and recruitment through contrasting mechanisms east and west(2020-04-24) Sharma, ShubhiGlobal forest diebacks are the beginnings of change that will be controlled by tree migration, which combines two uncertain processes, tree fecundity and recruitment. Knowledge of how, and where, tree migration can proceed is critical for adaptive management of forest resources and conservation efforts. The initial stage of seed production is erratic and poorly observed, with most studies limited to few trees, few species and few sites. At the next stage, tree recruitment is typically too sporadic to characterize at landscape scales. Neither seed production nor seedling recruitment have been quantified or linked to climate and habitat variables at scales needed to evaluate the changes happening now or to anticipate the diversity and structure of 21st century forests. As part of the masting inference and forecasting (MASTIF) project, we synthesized continental-scale data for tree fecundity gathered over the last half century and combined it with forest inventories to connect adult trees (basal area) to i) fecundity (seeds per basal area) and ii) recruitment (recruits per seed). A dynamic model fitted to >107 tree years of fecundity data provided estimates tree-by-year fecundity. A predictive distribution for the continent combines the fitted mode with 105 trees from Forest Inventory Analysis (FIA), Canadian National Forest Inventory(CNFI) and the National Ecological Observatory Network (NEON). Results show continent-wide migration as a balance between regional shifts in fecundity that can diverge from conditions that favour establishment, with clear differences in eastern and western North America. In moist eastern states, the geographic centers for fecundity are most commonly displaced south of tree basal area for the same species. This relationship would be expected if optimal conditions for seed production lie to the south of optimal conditions for growth and survival, despite potential benefits of warming poleward. In the dry west and north-central, fecundity is for some species displaced northwest of tree basal area, as would be expected if the high-rainfall north-west is predisposed to lead migration as the continent warms. The east-west contrast diminishes at the transition from fecundity to recruits per seed, which tends to be shifted north in both regions. The net continent-wide migration by contrasting east-west controls highlight interactions, with fecundity primed to lead tree migration in the west, and fecundity slowing progress in the east. The possibility of fecundity limitation offers one explanation for migration lag in species expected to track climate warming by expanding poleward.Item Open Access Spawning Biology of Female Blue Crabs, Callinectes Sapidus(2009) Darnell, Michael ZacharyThis dissertation investigated spawning biology of female blue crabs, Callinectes sapidus. Females mate following the terminal molt and undertake a spawning migration seaward, producing multiple clutches of larvae. To examine lifetime reproductive potential of female crabs, individual crabs were confined in the field from terminal molt to death. Crabs produced up to 7 clutches over 1-2 spawning seasons and survived up to 394 d after the terminal molt. Time to first clutch and time between clutches were positively correlated with carapace width and best described by degree-days. Size at maturity was negatively correlated with water temperature on the day of the terminal molt. Most measurements of clutch quality and larval fitness were similar for all clutches. The percentage of embryos developing normally decreased 40% from clutch 1 to clutch 4 and clutch volume decreased 50% from clutch 1 to clutch 5. Thus, most of a crab's reproductive output is from the first few clutches.
Using swimming and abdominal pumping assays, the roles of pheromones in larval release and migratory behavior were investigated. Following delivery of egg extract, bradykinin (a pheromone mimic), and trypsin (an enzyme that generates peptide pheromones), ovigerous crabs responded with increased abdominal pumping, indicating that peptide pheromones stimulate larval release in blue crabs. Ovigerous crabs responded with increased swimming following delivery of egg extract, but not following delivery of a peptide pheromone mimic or an enzyme that produces peptide pheromones. These results suggest that some substance generated from the egg mass stimulates vertical swimming, but that peptides alone do not stimulate swimming. A blend of molecules, possibly including sugars, may be the cue that stimulates swimming behavior.
Endogenous rhythms in vertical swimming, a mechanism underlying migration in tidal estuaries, were examined in the laboratory under constant conditions in juvenile females, recently-molted females, and females with mature ovaries from Beaufort, NC. Rhythms were variable in each stage, though circatidal rhythms consistent with ebb tide transport were observed in juvenile females and recently-molted females. Crabs with mature ovaries typically swam around the time of high tide. Rhythms were also examined for ovigerous females collected from estuaries with three different tidal regimes: semi-diurnal, diurnal, and non-tidal. Crabs from the tidal estuaries had circatidal or circalunidian swimming rhythms with period lengths corresponding to the tidal period of their home estuary. Swimming occurred primarily on ebb tide. Crabs from the non-tidal estuary had a circadian rhythm of vertical swimming around the time of sunset. Such a rhythm has no obvious migratory significance and migration likely takes place though another mechanism.
Swimming behavior was also examined in the field in one non-tidal site and three tidal sites. Crabs were tethered in the field and swimming was monitored using archival pressure tags. Crabs tethered in the non-tidal site did not swim, possibly due to the lack of necessary environmental cues. Crabs at the tidal sites swam primarily on ebb tides. Swimming was greatest at the deepest site, which also had the strongest currents. This site is known to be a migratory area for spawning blue crabs. Decreased swimming behavior was observed at the two shallower sites, including one site that is known to be habitat for all stages of blue crabs. These results indicate that swimming behavior is variable among different areas in a single estuary. In areas where swimming is reduced, crabs may continue migrating seaward by walking or may spend additional time in that area to forage. Within each site, peak swimming generally occurred during the time of the most rapid decrease in water level, suggesting that hydrostatic pressure may serve as a cue for swimming.
Mark-recapture studies were conducted in three rivers (North River, South River, Adams Creek) in eastern North Carolina, and recently-molted female crabs were tagged to ensure a relatively constant time since molting. Most crabs traveled relatively short distances and were recaptured before producing a clutch of eggs. Individuals that moved substantial distances typically moved down-estuary. The Adams Creek canal, connecting Adams Creek with the Newport River estuary, functioned as a migratory corridor, as crabs from both Adams Creek and South River migrated down the canal, presumably using ebb tide transport. Many of the crabs that migrated down the canal into the Newport River were recaptured while ovigerous. Results of this study support the hypothesis that rapid long-distance migratory movements do not begin until production of the first clutch of eggs, though some down-estuary movement takes place by prior to production of the first clutch of eggs.
Female blue crabs mate following the terminal molt and begin moving seaward soon thereafter by walking and swimming. Once the appropriate salinity (> 22 ppt) is reached, the first clutch of eggs is produced and migration rate rapidly increases. Blue crab spawning biology should be similar throughout the range of the species. After taking latitudinal temperature variation and other local variables into account, results presented here should be applicable not only to blue crabs in North Carolina, but in other areas as well.