MATUS, D.S.*; HUBER, J.L.; HALANYCH, K.M.; MARTINDALE, M.Q.; University of Hawaii; Exelixis, Inc.; Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution; University of Hawaii: The Phylogenetic Position of the Chaetognaths: A Molecular Approach Using Developmental Regulatory Genes Chaetognaths, or arrow worms, are marine vermiform animals that are ubiquitous and abundant members of oceanic zooplankton communities.�They are active predators possessing […]

LYNCH, K.*; RAND, A.S.; RYAN, M.; WILCZYNSKI, W.; Univ. of Texas at Austin and Smithsonian Tropical Research Institute: The Interaction Between Motivation to Mate and Permissiveness in Female Mate Choice Female mate choice is comprised of multiple aspects, such as motivation to mate, recognition of mate signals and discrimination between multiple mate signals. In addition, […]

OWEN-ASHLEY, N. T.; HAYS, Q.; BENTLEY, G. E.; WINGFIELD, J. C.; Univ. of Washington, Seattle; Univ. of Montana, Missoula; Univ. of Washington, Seattle; Univ. of Washington, Seattle: Testosterone reduces sickness behavior in songbirds At the onset of parasitic and viral infections, animals display a suite of behavioral patterns that are collectively known as sickness behaviors. […]

PARK, D.S.*; EISTHEN, H.L.; Michigan State University, East Lansing: Terminal Nerve Peptides Modulate Activity in the Vertebrate Olfactory Epithelium The terminal nerve is an anterior cranial nerve that extends between the nasal cavity and preoptic area and is hypothesized to serve a neuromodulatory function. Previous studies have shown that gonadotropin releasing hormone (GnRH), a peptide […]

HAUSSMANN, M.F.; WINKLER, D.W.; O’REILLY, K.M.; HUNTINGTON, C.E.; VLECK, C.M.; Iowa St. Univ., Ames; Cornell Univ., Ithaca, NY; Univ. of Portland, OR; Harpswell, ME; Iowa St. Univ., Ames: Telomere shortening in birds varies with life span The senescent decline in survival and reproductive performance with advancing age is a nearly universal pattern in the life […]

WILLEY, J.S.*; BLOB, R.W.; Clemson University, SC: Tail function during aquatic walking in snapping turtles Most lineages of quadrupedal reptiles (e.g., lizards, crocodilians) possess long tails that play important roles during locomotion on land (as the origin for caudofemoralis, a major leg retractor muscle) and in water (as a propagator of propulsive waves during swimming). […]

HOOD, C.S.; MARTINEZ, M.A.; Loyola University, New Orleans; Loyola University, New Orleans: Swimming performance in the golden shiner, Notemigonus chrysoleucas The study of the effects of body size and shape in fishes on their swimming performance has been an important research topic for nearly 100 years. This study is a first step towards establishing a […]

MORTON, M.L.*; MACDOUGALL-SHACKLETON, E.A.; PEREYRA, M.E.; HAHN, T.P.; UC Davis; U Western Ontario; UC Davis; UC Davis: Survival is Unrelated to Natural Variation in Reproductive Effort in Mountain White-crowned Sparrows In theory, mortality can ensue in parents if they devote excessive resources toward reproduction. Such a trade-off between reproductive effort and survival has been found […]

BENOWITZ-FREDERICKS, Z.M.; KITAYSKY, A.S.; SHULTZ, M.T.; WINGFIELD, J.C.; Univ. of Washington, Seattle; Univ. of Washington, Seattle; USGS, Alaska Biological Sciences Center; Univ. of Washington, Seattle: Steroid hormones in yolk and allantoic waste of Common murres (Uria aalge) – patterns within a subcolony In this study we examined temporal patterns of steroid levels in egg yolk […]

MACDOUGALL-SHACKLETON, E.A.; MACDOUGALL-SHACKLETON, S.A.; SMITH, A.W.; HAHN, T.P.; University of Western Ontario; University of Western Ontario; Princeton University; University of California, Davis: Sierra Nevada mountain white-crowned sparrows do not discriminate among within-mountain-range song dialect types Song dialects have been the subject of much theoretical and experimental research. Many hypotheses have been proposed to explain the […]