Systematics Collections at Fort Hays State University

An article detailing the systematics resources of Fort Hays State University.https://scholars.fhsu.edu/buildings/2480/thumbnail.jp

The Fort Hays Museums

A typed version of the article to be later submitted to the University Forums.https://scholars.fhsu.edu/buildings/2482/thumbnail.jp

University Forum - The Fort Hays Museums

An article covering the different museums which the Fort Hays Campus and surrounding area has to offer.https://scholars.fhsu.edu/buildings/2481/thumbnail.jp

Natural History of the Southern Short-Tailed Shrew, \u3ci\u3eBlarina carolinensis\u3c/i\u3e

The southern short-tailed shrew, Blarina carolinensis, inhabits a broad range of ecological situations in the southeastern United States and, in many areas, is among the two or three most abundant species of small mammals. Nevertheless, its natural history is poorly known and much of what researchers assumed was fairly well understood about this species actually resulted from work on another species (Blarina brevicauda) and may not be correct in all instances. This problem resulted when modem systematic methods revealed that the wide-ranging and well-studied species known at that time as Blarina brevicauda actually consisted of three species (B. brevicauda, B. carolinensis, and B. hylophaga). The purposes of this investigation were: 1) to review published literature on the natural history of short-tailed shrews and determine which information actually pertains to the southern short-tailed shrew, and 2) to summarize current knowledge about this shrew. The existing body of knowledge concerning the southern short-tailed shrew is reviewed in the categories of taxonomy, morphology, fossil record, distribution, genetics, habitats, populations, reproduction, movements and home range, nests and runways, diet, physiology, predators, and parasites and disease. Suggestions are provided for future research on B. carolinensis

Dental Evolution of the Meadow Vole in Mainland, Peninsular, and Insular Environments in Southern New England

Accordingly, the objectives of this study were: 1) to compare the extent of variability (both quantitative and qualitative) in the dentitions of populations of Microtus inhabiting mainland, penisular, and insular environments; 2) to identify some of the selective forces that affect mainland and maritime populations of Microtus; 3) to examine Guthrie\u27s hypothesis regarding the relationship between intensity of selection and variation.https://scholars.fhsu.edu/fort_hays_studies_series/1064/thumbnail.jp

Taxonomic status and biogeography of the southern bog lemming, Synaptomys cooperi, on the central Great Plains

We assessed geographic and nongeographic variation among populations of the southern bog lemming (Synaptomys cooperi) in Arkansas, Iowa, Illinois, Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and South Dakota based on morphological data. Univariate and multivariate analyses of 15 cranial characters revealed no consistent sexual dimorphism. Geographic variation in cranial morphology of adults varied clinally, with individuals increasing in size from north to south and east to west. The largest individuals overall were from southwestern Kansas (S. c. paludis) and southwestern Nebraska (S. c. relictus), and the smallest individuals were from populations in eastern Illinois (S. c. gossii). We found only minor steps in clinal variation of cranial morphology, which may be attributed to periodic or recent isolation. No individuals of S. c. paludis and S. c. relictus have been collected since 1946 and 1968, respectively, and these taxa may be extinct. Because of the paucity of specimens, taxonomic conclusions as to the intraspecific relationships of populations are speculative. We, therefore, recommend retention of the currently recognized subspecies S. c. gossii, S. c. paludis, and S. c. relictus until genetic characters can be analyzed

Natural History of the Southern Short-tailed Shrew, Blarina carolinensis

The southern short-tailed shrew, Blarina carolinensis, inhabits a broad range of ecological situations in the southeastern United States and, in many areas, is among the two or three most abundant species of small mammals. Nevertheless, its natural history is poorly known and much of what researchers assumed was fairly well understood about this species actually resulted from work on another species (Blarina brevicauda) and may not be correct in all instances. This problem resulted when modem systematic methods revealed that the wideranging and well-studied species known at that time as Blarina brevicauda actually consisted of three species (B. brevicauda, B. carolinensis, and B. hylophaga). The purposes of this investigation were: 1) to review published literature on the natural history of short-tailed shrews and determine which information actually pertains to the southern short-tailed shrew, and 2) to summarize current knowledge about this shrew

A Variable Coeficient of Restitution Experiment on a Linear Air Track

A system consisting of two pendula attached to an air cart is mathematically analyzed, and the coefficient of restitution is shown to pass through a deep minimum. The solution to the small angle equation of motion is transcendental and provides an exercise in graphical methods for the beginning mechanics student

Mensural discrimination between Reithrodontomys megalotis and R. montanus using cranial characters

We assessed the utility of cranial measurements to discriminate between the western harvest mouse (Reithrodontomys megalotis) and plains harvest mouse (R. montanus). We tested four combinations of measurements using discriminant function analysis to determine if several measurements could be used together to identify individuals of the two species regardless of age. Individual cranial measurements could not be used to correctly identify all individuals of the two species when relative age was disregarded. When age was considered, adults and old adults, but not subadults, could be identified correctly based on univariate statistical data from cranial characters. All specimens of the two species, regardless of age, were identified correctly by discriminant function analysis using three of the four combinations of measurements

Mammals of Spanish Peaks State Wildlife Area, Colorado

Habitats and relative abundance of small mammals in the Spanish Peaks State Wildlife Area in western Las Animas Co., Colorado, were assessed. A total of 821 mammals of 20 species was collected in 2750 trapnights between 31 May and 19 August of 1981. Eight additional species of mammals were observed on the wildlife area but not documented. The deer mouse (Peromyscus maniculatus) and rock mouse (P. difficilis) were the most abundant small mammals, accounting for 63 and 16%, respectively, of the total catch. The deer mouse was the only species caught in every habitat sampled. Abert\u27s squirrel (Sciurus abert,) previously has not been recorded in Colorado from as far southeast as the Spanish Peaks State Wildlife Area. The mammalian fauna of Colorado has been the subject of numerous studies since the late 1800s. Early studies were by Cockerell (1890), Warren (1906), Cary (1911), and Warren (1942, published posthumously). More recent investigations include the book by Lechleitner (1969), the exhaustive compilation by Armstrong (1972), and the latilong surveys by Bissell (1978, 1982). In spite of these studies, several regions of Colorado remain poorly represented in collections. Armstrong (1972) noted that certain poorly surveyed parts of the western two-thirds of the state appear to me to be ... significant from the standpoint of zoogeography. Western Las Animas County--the Park Plateau and Culebra Range [of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains]--is such an area. In a later publication, Armstrong et al. (1973) noted that additional field investigations were needed in the vicinity of the Wet Mountains, a biogeographically important region where several species of grassland mammals reach altitudinal extremes and certain southern species reach northern limits. With this in mind, the Colorado Division of Wildlife initiated fieldwork in the Spanish Peaks State Wildlife Area to sample the vertebrate fauna in general and to assess habitat associations and relative abundance of small mammals in particular. This report documents the mammals collected and observed in the Spanish Peaks State Wildlife Area during summer of 1981 and summarizes biological data on mammals obtained at that time.https://scholars.fhsu.edu/fort_hays_studies_series/1067/thumbnail.jp