Geographic Distribution of Soybean Aphid Biotypes in the United States and Canada during 2008–2010

Soybean aphid (Aphis glycines Matsumura) is a native pest of soybean [Glycine max (L.) Merr.] in eastern Asia and was detected on soybeans in North America in 2000. In 2004, the soybean cultivar Dowling was described to be resistant to soybean aphids with the Rag1 gene for resistance. In 2006, a virulent biotype of soybean aphid in Ohio was reported to proliferate on soybeans with the Rag1 gene. The objective was to survey the occurrence of virulent aphid populations on soybean indicator lines across geographies and years. Nine soybean lines were identified on the basis of their degree of aphid resistance and their importance in breeding programs. Naturally occurring soybean aphid populations were collected in 10 states (Kansas, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, and Wisconsin) and the Canadian province of Ontario. The reproductive capacity of field-collected soybean aphid populations was tested on soybean lines; growth rates were compared in no-choice field cages at each geographic region across 3 yr. The occurrence of soybean aphid biotypes was highly variable from year to year and across environments. The frequency of Biotypes 2, 3, and 4 was 54, 18, and 7%, respectively, from the 28 soybean aphid populations collected across 3 yr and 11 environments. Plant introduction (PI) 567598B, a natural gene pyramid of rag1c and rag4, had lowest frequency of soybean aphid colonization (18%). Several factors may have contributed to the variability, including genetic diversity of soybean aphids, parthenogenicity, abundance of the overwintering host buckthorn (Rhamnus spp.), and migratory patterns of soybean aphids across the landscape

Rapid isolation and characterization of microsatellites in the critically endangered mountain bongo (Tragelaphus eurycerus isaaci)

High-throughput sequencing tools promise to revolutionize many aspects of genetic research, e.g. by allowing the identification of functional adaptive genetic variation. However, the expense and expertise required to apply these tools to basic conservation questions is a challenge for applications outside academia, resulting in a so-called ‘conservation genomics gap’ (Shafer et al.2015). The conservation genetics paradigm is that, basic information about inbreeding and gene flow are often critical to inform conservation management of small populations (Ouborg et al.2010). This information is often needed quickly and ideally should be accessible to workers without special expertise in genomics (DeSalle and Amato 2004). While the inferential power of high-throughput sequencing to interrogate the genome is profound, the cost for population analysis is higher (though decreasing) than for traditional neutral markers. Thus, the use of neutral markers is still relevant in conservation applications. However, this assumes that neutral markers have been discovered and characterized for a given species of conservation concern, which is often untrue for nonmodel organisms. Here, we use a fast, cost-efficient, high-throughput sequencing method (Illumina MiSeq) to rapidly identify and characterize microsatellites in the mountain bongo (Tragelaphus eurycerus isaaci), which has a clear and timely conservation imperative but lacks any described neutral markers

Population Dynamics and Angler Exploitation of the Unique Muskellunge Population in Shoepack Lake, Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota

A unique population of muskellunge Esox masquinongy inhabits Shoepack Lake in Voyageurs National Park, Minnesota. Little is known about its status, dynamics, and angler exploitation, and there is concern for the long-term viability of this population. We used intensive sampling and mark–recapture methods to quantify abundance, survival, growth, condition, age at maturity and fecundity and angler surveys to quantify angler pressure, catch rates, and exploitation. During our study, heavy rain washed out a dam constructed by beavers Castor canadensis which regulates the water level at the lake outlet, resulting in a nearly 50% reduction in surface area. We estimated a population size of 1,120 adult fish at the beginning of the study. No immediate reduction in population size was detected in response to the loss of lake area, although there was a gradual, but significant, decline in population size over the 2-year study. Adults grew less than 50 mm per year, and relative weight (W r) averaged roughly 80. Anglers were successful in catching, on average, two fish during a full day of angling, but harvest was negligible. Shoepack Lake muskellunge exhibit much slower growth rates and lower condition, but much higher densities and angler catch per unit effort (CPUE), than other muskellunge populations. The unique nature, limited distribution, and location of this population in a national park require special consideration for management. The results of this study provide the basis for assessing the long-term viability of the Shoepack Lake muskellunge population through simulations of long-term population dynamics and genetically effective population size

AMNIOTE PHYLOGENY AND THE IMPORTANCE OF FOSSILS

Several prominent cladists have questioned the importance of fossils in phylogenctic inference, and it is becoming increasingly popular to simply fit extinct forms, if they are considered at all, to a cladogram of Recent taxa. Gardiner's (1982) and LØvtrup's (1985) study of amniote phylogeny exemplifies this differential treatment, and we focused on that group of organisms to test the proposition that fossils cannot overturn a theory of relationships based only on the Recent biota. Our parsimony analysis of amniote phylogeny, special knowledge contributed by fossils being scrupulously avoided, led to the following best fitting classification, which is similar to the novel hypothesis Gardiner published: (lepidosaurs (turtles (mammals (birds, crocodiles)))). However, adding fossils resulted in a markedly different most parsimonious cladogram of the extant taxa: (mammals (turtles (lepidosaurs (birds, crocodiles)))). That classification is like the traditional hypothesis, and it provides a better fit to the stratigraphic record. To isolate the extinct taxa responsible for the latter classification, the data were successively partitioned with each phylogenetic analysis, and we concluded that: (1) the ingroup, not the outgroup, fossils were important; (2) synapsid, not reptile, fossils were pivotal; (3) certain synapsid fossils, not the earliest or latest, were responsible. The critical nature of the synapsid fossils seemed to lie in the particular combination of primitive and derived character slates they exhibited. Classifying those fossils, along with mammals, as the sister group to the lineage consisting of birds and crocodiles resulted in a relatively poor fit to data; one involving a 2—4 fold increase in evolutionary reversals! Thus, the importance of the critical fossils, collectively or individually, seems to reside in their relative primitive-ness, and the simplest explanation for their more conservative nature is that they have had less time to evolve. While fossils may be important in phylogenetic inference only under certain conditions, there is no compelling reason to prejudge their contribution. We urge systematists to evaluate fairly all of the available evidence.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/73857/1/j.1096-0031.1988.tb00514.x.pd

Our History is the Future: Mni Wiconi and the Struggle for Native Liberation

From April 2016 to February 2017, Indigenous women and youth led a historic struggle to halt the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline from crossing Mni Sose, the Missouri River, and threatening the drinking water of the Standing Rock Indian Reservation and millions downstream. Rallied under the banner Mni Wiconi, a Lakota assertion meaning “water is life,” centuries of history converged during the protests. It was about more than an oil pipeline. It was struggle over the meaning of history, the defense of land and water, and the rights of Indigenous peoples to determine their own future. When land and water are taken or destroyed, the past is lost with them and so too is the possibility of a livable future. In this dissertation, I situate multiple archival sources and oral histories to document two centuries of Indigenous resistance against the trespass of settlers, dams, and oil pipelines across the Mni Sose. I develop an alternative intellectual history of the Oceti Sakowin, the Nation of the Seven Council Fires, the Lakota-, Dakota-, and Nakota-speaking peoples, from the nineteenth century to the present. This story begins with the trespass of Lewis and Clark in 1804 and the arrival of the US on the Missouri. I document the drastic changes brought to the land, the water, and the people during mid-nineteenth century Indian wars and the mid-twentieth century iv damming of the Missouri by the Army Corps of Engineers. I also tell the story of Indigenous resistance, Red Power, the rise of Indigenous internationalism, and the creation of the International Indian Treaty Council at Standing Rock in 1974 to bring world attention to these issues. It was at Standing Rock where histories of resistance converged against the Dakota Access Pipeline and gained international appeal. Clearly, Oceti Sakowin history resonates with the international community today. Such resonance, I argue, has broader implications than what could be considered just “Indigenous” issues and has universal appeal, while also remaining firmly grounded in history and place

The impact of Relative Prevalence on dual-target search for threat items from airport X-ray screening

The probability of target presentation in visual search tasks influences target detection performance: thisis known as the prevalence effect (Wolfe et al., 2005). Additionally, searching for several targets simultaneouslyreduces search performance: this is known as the dual-target cost (DTC: Menneer et al., 2007).The interaction between the DTC and prevalence effect was investigated in a single study by presentingone target in dual-target search at a higher level of prevalence than the other target (Target A: 45% Prevalence;Target B: 5% Prevalence). An overall DTC was found for both RTs and response accuracy. Furthermore,there was an effect of target prevalence in dual-target search, suggesting that, when one target ispresented at a higher level of prevalence than the other, both the dual-target cost and the prevalenceeffect contribute to decrements in performance. The implications for airport X-ray screening arediscussed