Phylogenetics and Phylogeography of Moray Eels (Muraenidae)

This dissertation describes the evolutionary history of Moray eels: Muraenidae). Moray eels are apex predators on coral reefs around the world, but they are not well studied because of their cryptic habitats and occasionally aggressive behaviors. I provide the first molecular phylogeny of moray eels with widespread taxonomic and geographic coverage, including 44 species representing two subfamilies, eight genera, and all tropical ocean basins. Phylogenetic relationships among these taxa are estimated from portions of mitochondrial loci cytochrome b and cytochrome oxidase subunit 1, and portions of the nuclear loci RAG-1 and RAG-2. I test four sets of contrasting phylogenetic hypotheses using standard topological tests. First, my phylogeny statistically supports the taxonomic distinction between true morays: Muraeninae) and snakemorays: Uropterygiinae). Second, I demonstrate that the durophagous characters: shell crushing jaws) of the genera Gymnomuraena and Echidna are not homologous. Third, I demonstrate that durophagous morphological characters have evolved in parallel in an ancestor of Gymnomuraena and at least three additional times within the genus Echidna. Finally, the tree topology indicates multiple invasions of the Atlantic from the Indo-Pacific, one of these occurring immediately prior to formation of the Isthmus of Panama approximately 2.8 MY ago and one or two others occurring in the early to mid Miocene. Cladogenesis occurring within the Atlantic during the mid Miocene and Pliocene also contributed to moray species diversity. These data include a pair of sister species separated by the Isthmus of Panama, allowing a time-calibrated tree with an estimated crown age for Muraenidae at between 41 and 60 MY ago, consistent with fossil evidence. Most lineage accumulation within morays occurred from the late Pliocene: ~25 MY ago) through the Miocene: 5-23 MY ago). This dissertation also examines phylogeographic patterns of diversification within morays. Reef fishes disperse primarily as oceanic pelagic larvae, and debate continues over the extent of this dispersal, with recent evidence for geographically restricted: closed) populations in some species. In contrast, moray eels have the longest pelagic larval stages among reef fishes, possibly providing opportunities to disperse over great distances. I test this prediction by measuring mtDNA and nuclear DNA variation in two species of moray eels, Gymnothorax undulatus: N = 165) and Gymnothorax flavimarginatus: N = 124), sampled at 14-15 locations across the Indo-Pacific. The mtDNA data comprise 632 bp of cytochrome b and 596 bp of cytochrome oxidase I. Nuclear markers include two recombination-activating loci: 421 bp of RAG-1 and 754 bp of RAG-2). Analyses of molecular variance: AMOVA) and Mantel tests indicate little or no genetic differentiation, and no isolation by distance, across 22,000 km of the Indo-Pacific. I estimate that mitochondrial genetic variation coalesces within the past ~2.3 million years for G. flavimarginatus and within the past ~5.9 million years for G. undulatus. Permutation tests of geographic distance on the mitochondrial haplotype networks indicate recent range expansions for some younger haplotypes: estimated within ~600,000 years) and episodic fragmentation of populations at times of low sea level. My results support the predictions that the extended larval durations of moray eels enable ocean-wide genetic continuity of populations. This is the first phylogeographic survey of the moray eels, and morays are the first reef fishes known to be genetically homogeneous across the entire Indo-Pacific. Finally, this dissertation uses comparative phylogeography to examine the effects of niche breadth on population genetic structure. The effects of niche breadth on range size, rarity, and extinction risk have been well explored. However, the ability of niche breadth to affect population structure within species has never been examined in a comparative framework, possibly due to the unique set of conditions necessary for such a test. Population structure is often a result of differential gene flow among populations, and gene flow can be affected by both the vagility of an organism or its gametes: dispersal capability), or by the variety of habitats that an organism can occupy within its dispersal capabilities: niche breadth). While niche breadth has been shown to affect range size and rarity more than dispersal capability, it is unclear if this pattern extends to population genetic structure within species. I make use of a unique characteristic of moray eel: Muraenidae) biogeography. Moray eels are cosmopolitan species with the lowest level of endemism among the 4000+ species of reef fishes, and while many species exist in a variety of habitats throughout their range, other species with identical ranges occupy only a small subset of those habitats, and have a diet that is also a specialized subset of the habitat generalists\u27 diet. I compare measures of population genetic structure in two broad-niche species of moray eels: Gymnothorax flavimarginatus, G. undulatus) with two co-distributed but more specialized narrow-niche species of moray eels: Echidna nebulosa and Gymnomuraena zebra) throughout the Indo-Pacific. I report molecular genetic data for E. nebulosa and G. zebra using molecular markers orthologous to those used for G. flavimarginatus and G. undulatus for geographically overlapping sampling localities. I estimate geographic distributions of the four moray species using geographic information systems to delimit the distributions of habitats favorable for each species. Despite an 80% reduction in available habitat within the narrow-niche species and comparable dispersal capabilities, each of the four species shows high levels of connectivity throughout their respective ranges. These results indicate that in broadly-distributed species with high dispersal capabilities, niche breadth may have little to no effect on population structure

Historical Responses Of Marine Turtles To Global Climate Change And Juvenile Loggerhead Recruitment In Florida

Marine turtle conservation is most successful when it is based on sound data incorporating life history, historical population stability, and gene flow among populations. This research attempts to provide that information through two studies. In chapter I, I identify historical patterns of gene flow, population sizes, and contraction/expansion during major climatic shifts. In chapter II, I reveal a life history characteristic of loggerhead turtles previously undocumented. I identify a pattern of juvenile recruitment to foraging grounds proximal to their natal nesting beach. This pattern results in a predictable recruitment pattern from juvenile foraging ground aggregations to local rookeries. This research will provide crucial information to conservation managers by demonstrating how sensitive marine turtles are to global climate change. In the second component of my research, I demonstrate how threats posed to juvenile foraging grounds will have measurable effects on rookeries proximal to those foraging grounds. The addition of this basic life history information will have dramatic effects on marine turtle conservation in the future, and will serve as the basis for more thorough, forward-looking recovery plans

Principles of Biology II (Valdosta State University)

This Grants Collection for Principles of Biology II was created under a Round Four ALG Textbook Transformation Grant. Affordable Learning Georgia Grants Collections are intended to provide faculty with the frameworks to quickly implement or revise the same materials as a Textbook Transformation Grants team, along with the aims and lessons learned from project teams during the implementation process. Documents are in .pdf format, with a separate .docx (Word) version available for download. Each collection contains the following materials: Linked Syllabus Initial Proposal Final Reporthttps://oer.galileo.usg.edu/biology-collections/1009/thumbnail.jp

Principles of Biology I (Valdosta State University)

This Grants Collection uses the grant-supported lecture slides to Principles of Biology I from Valdosta State University: http://oer.galileo.usg.edu/biology-ancillary/1/ This Grants Collection for Principles of Biology I was created under a Round Two ALG Textbook Transformation Grant. Affordable Learning Georgia Grants Collections are intended to provide faculty with the frameworks to quickly implement or revise the same materials as a Textbook Transformation Grants team, along with the aims and lessons learned from project teams during the implementation process. Documents are in .pdf format, with a separate .docx (Word) version available for download. Each collection contains the following materials: Linked Syllabus Initial Proposal Final Reporthttps://oer.galileo.usg.edu/biology-collections/1007/thumbnail.jp

Genomic Data Reveal Conserved Female Heterogamety in Giant Salamanders with Gigantic Nuclear Genomes

A grant from the One-University Open Access Fund at the University of Kansas was used to defray the author's publication fees in this Open Access journal. The Open Access Fund, administered by librarians from the KU, KU Law, and KUMC libraries, is made possible by contributions from the offices of KU Provost, KU Vice Chancellor for Research & Graduate Studies, and KUMC Vice Chancellor for Research. For more information about the Open Access Fund, please see http://library.kumc.edu/authors-fund.xml.Systems of genetic sex determination and the homology of sex chromosomes in different taxa vary greatly across vertebrates. Much progress remains to be made in understanding systems of genetic sex determination in non-model organisms, especially those with homomorphic sex chromosomes and/or large genomes. We used reduced representation genome sequencing to investigate genetic sex determination systems in the salamander family Cryptobranchidae (genera Cryptobranchus and Andrias), which typifies both of these inherent difficulties. We tested hypotheses of male- or female-heterogamety by sequencing hundreds of thousands of anonymous genomic regions in a panel of known-sex cryptobranchids and characterized patterns of presence/absence, inferred zygosity, and depth of coverage to identify sex-linked regions of these 56 gigabase genomes. Our results strongly support the hypothesis that all cryptobranchid species possess homologous systems of female heterogamety, despite maintenance of homomorphic sex chromosomes over nearly 60 million years. Additionally, we report a robust, non-invasive genetic assay for sex diagnosis in Cryptobranchus and Andrias which may have great utility for conservation efforts with these endangered salamanders. Co-amplification of these W-linked markers in both cryptobranchid genera provides evidence for long-term sex chromosome stasis in one of the most divergent salamander lineages. These findings inform hypotheses about the ancestral mode of sex determination in salamanders, but suggest that comparative data from other salamander families are needed. Our results further demonstrate that massive genomes are not necessarily a barrier to effective genome-wide sequencing and that the resulting data can be highly informative about sex determination systems in taxa with homomorphic sex chromosomes.Cryptobranchid Interest GroupFresno Chaffee ZooSaint Louis Zoo WildCare InstituteUniversity of Kentucky G.F. Ribble FundNational Science Foundation (DEB-0949532 to D.W.W. and DGE-3048109801 to P.M.H.

Modeling How Shoreline Shape Affects Tides and How Underwater Structures Attenuate Wave Energy: An Example of the Georgia Bight

Two demonstrations are presented that lead students to a greater understanding of ocean tides and wave energy, using the unique tidal range and wave action of the Georgia Bight as an example. The goal is to explain how varying geological features in coastal regions create different wave energies and how the shape of a coastline affects the magnitude of the tidal range. These mechanisms were demonstrated to students in an upper-division college course prior to attending a field trip, in which they would evaluate real-world examples of coastlines with high and low wave energy, and regions with large and small tidal magnitudes. Here, the method of applied learning proved to be successful in guiding students to better comprehension of concepts when relating demonstrations to firsthand observations in the field

A Vulnerability Assessment of 300 Species in Florida: Threats from Sea Level Rise, Land Use, and Climate Change

Species face many threats, including accelerated climate change, sea level rise, and conversion and degradation of habitat from human land uses. Vulnerability assessments and prioritization protocols have been proposed to assess these threats, often in combination with information such as species rarity; ecological, evolutionary or economic value; and likelihood of success. Nevertheless, few vulnerability assessments or prioritization protocols simultaneously account for multiple threats or conservation values. We applied a novel vulnerability assessment tool, the Standardized Index of Vulnerability and Value, to assess the conservation priority of 300 species of plants and animals in Florida given projections of climate change, human land-use patterns, and sea level rise by the year 2100. We account for multiple sources of uncertainty and prioritize species under five different systems of value, ranging from a primary emphasis on vulnerability to threats to an emphasis on metrics of conservation value such as phylogenetic distinctiveness. Our results reveal remarkable consistency in the prioritization of species across different conservation value systems. Species of high priority include the Miami blue butterfly (Cyclargus thomasi bethunebakeri), Key tree cactus (Pilosocereus robinii), Florida duskywing butterfly (Ephyriades brunnea floridensis), and Key deer (Odocoileus virginianus clavium). We also identify sources of uncertainty and the types of life history information consistently missing across taxonomic groups. This study characterizes the vulnerabilities to major threats of a broad swath of Florida\u27s biodiversity and provides a system for prioritizing conservation efforts that is quantitative, flexible, and free from hidden value judgments

Sexual Compulsivity, the Internet, and Sexual Behaviors Among Men in a Rural Area of the United States

This is the publisher's version, which is also found by way of http://online.liebertpub.com/toc/apc/24/9Sexual compulsivity has been associated with higher frequencies of sexual behaviors that may increase risk for transmission of HIV and other sexually transmitted infections (STI). In a rural midwestern region where social and community resources for the sexual health of men who have sex with men (MSM) are relatively few, the patterns of partner-seeking and sexual behavior, and their relations to sexual compulsivity, may be different than findings from other assessments of men in urban centers. Using a community-based participatory approach (CBPR), data were collected from 309 men who were primarily white, identified as gay or homosexual, and had a mean age of 29.37 years (SD¼11.33), to explore relations between scores on a measure of sexual compulsivity and their sexual partner-seeking, drug and alcohol use, and sexual behaviors with men and women. The majority of men reported having engaged in sexual activity with men in the past 30 days. Those scoring higher than the sample mean (1.65 [SD¼0.66]) on the sexual compulsivity measure reported patterns of having sex with partners met online and having been the insertive or receptive partner in unprotected anal intercourse. Given the unique patterns of sexual partner-seeking in this area, interventions to decrease sexual risk-taking should take into account that the vast majority of men in rural areas are using the Internet to locate sexual partners, and prevention messages focused on rural contexts need to be tailored to include men who have a propensity for sexually compulsive behaviors. Additionally, interventions created for virtual spaces may be more sustainable with rural communities than traditional approaches to HIV/STI prevention