PAPASTAMATIOU, YP; LOWE, CG; KELLEY, KM; California State University, Long Beach; California State University Long Beach; California State University Long Beach: Gastric pH Changes Associated with Feeding in Leopard Sharks: Using pH to Study the Foraging Ecology of Sharks Little is known about feeding periodicity or daily ration levels of sharks in the wild, due […]

WATERMAN, J.M.; University of Central Florida: Why African ground squirrels hang out with mongooses: are there benefits to interspecific associations? Predator detection and deterrence are major benefits of sociality for many small mammals, and these benefits may extend to interspecific groups. In southern Africa, Cape ground squirrels (Xerus inauris) often share burrow systems with two […]

TAYLOR, C.N.; WASSERSUG, R.J.; Dalhousie University; Dalhousie University: Mechanical and Synergistic Factors Influencing Echinostomatoid Trematode Infections in Anurans We used high-speed videography of staged encounters between tadpoles of either Bufo americanus or Rana sylvatica and Echinostoma cercariae to understand why echinostomatoids, such as Echinostoma and Ribeiroia (which has been implicated in epidemics of limb deformities […]

BARBER, A. M.; University of Nevada, Reno: Hormonal basis of seed-caching behavior and spatial memory ability in Merriam�s kangaroo rats Merriam�s kangaroo rats (Dipodomys merriami) utilize two main strategies to store seeds for future consumption: scatterhoarding and larderhoarding. Scatterhoarding is the placement of seed caches that are dispersed in many locations within an animal�s home […]

COSTA, D.P.; CROCKER, D.E; BOEHLERT, G; University of California, Santa Cruz; Sonoma State University ; Oregon State University: Foraging Behavior Of Northern Elephant Seals Relative To Frontal Features In The North Pacific Ocean Archival data-loggers coupled with ARGOS based satellite tags are providing a detailed picture of the foraging behavior of elephant seals. They dive […]

SERVEDIO, M.R.*; LANDE, R.; University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill; University of California, San Diego: Coevolution of an avian host and its brood parasite We model the coevolution of host and cuckoo egg characters (termed �size� as a proxy for general appearance), host discrimination, and host and cuckoo population dynamics. Hosts use an evolving, comparative […]

ADAMO, S.A.; Dalhousie University: A good male is hard to find – problems in identifying an ‘immunocompetent’ male Immune systems are composed of a number of separate physiological mechanisms. Therefore, different pathogens can induce different immune responses. In the cricket Gryllus texensis we found that lysozyme-like activity correlated with resistance to the bacterium Bacillus cereus […]

BACHMAN, G.C.; Univ. of Nebraska, Lincoln: The cost of breeding : Energy availability and the recovery of immune function in recently emerged hibernators. Injury and subsequent infection are a potential cost of breeding in male mammals. Even where males are not wounded, the immunosuppressive effect of endocrine changes during breeding can increase a male’s susceptibility […]

UZZELL, Thomas; STOLZENBERG, Ethan D.; SHINNAR, Ann E.*; ZASLOFF, Michael; Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia; Univ. of Pennsylvania School of Medicine, Philadelphia; Barnard College, Columbia University, New York; Georgetown Univ. Medical Center, Washington, DC: Innate and Adaptive Immunity in Hagfish: Role of Cathelicidin Antimicrobial Peptides in the Hagfish Gut Hagfish are primitive craniates that lack […]

LECLAIR, E. E.; NOMELLINI, V.; BAHENA, M.; BINGLE, C.D.; DePaul University; University of Sheffield: Innate Immunity in the Oral Cavity? A Mouse Tongue Tale Epithelial surfaces are patrolled by molecules that recognize bacterial byproducts to enhance host defense. We describe the cloning and expression of a mouse gene, which we call TPL, whose mRNA appears […]