Sex Ratio and Success, an Assessment of Lindera melissifolia in Arkansas

Lindera melissifolia pondberry, is a federally endangered dioecious shrub found in Arkansas and four other southeastern states. Although by far the greatest area exists in Arkansas, it is broken into numerous small single-sex clones concentrated in two locations. Several stands have been lost during the 1980\u27s according to records of the Arkansas Natural Heritage Commission. Even casual observation reveals that there are more males than females. This suggests dependence on vegetative reproduction, with possible bias against females. This paper reports on work investigating this suggestion. It was found that a 7:1 bias in area covered favors males. Poor survival of seedlings and transplants indicates that only apomictic reproduction is successful. Females allocate 45 times more resources to reproduction than males. Stem dieback occurs in both sexes but regrowth is vigorous. Shoot moisture stress and response of net photosynthesis and conductance favor growth of males

Photosynthetic Competence of an Endangered Shrub, Lindera melissifolia

Net photosynthesis and water relations were investigated in situ for a population of Lindera melissifolia in northeast Arkansas. Photosynthetic light use efficiency was found to be characteristic of a shade plant. Response of photosynthesis to temperature and CO₂ was insensitive over ranges found during the growing season. High water use efficiency was demonstrated, but under typical conditions of low light this was marginally beneficial. In comparison -with competing understory plants, the species proved to be photosynthetically competent. The data are evaluated in terms of the survival potential of the species

Some Studies on Introducing Castilleja coccinea, Indian Paintbrush, Into Prairie Vegetation

Indian paintbrush, absent from many prairie remnants in Arkansas, behaves as a biennial in certain central Arkansas prairies, growing as a small rosette one season and flowering the next. It is known to be an indiscriminate root parasite. Field sowings were made in October, March and June. Annual change in population size was monitored for one of these sowings. Laboratory studies of germination were conducted to investigate the effects of light, temperature, water potential, and host species. Haustorial connections to host roots were examined. Based on these studies, a strategy for establishing the species in prairie was developed

Growth and bract pigmentation in poinsettia as influenced by fast neutron irradiation

A study was made on growth and bract pigmentation in poinsettias Influenced by fast neutron Irradiation. Plants from two varieties of poinsettia,Mikkelpink, a periclinal chimera, and Spring Pink, agenetic pink, were irradiated with 300 rads of fast neutrons. Successive generations of cuttings were rooted from these plants and allowed to flower. At this time bract diameter and plant height were measured for growth responses. Color changes on bracts were also recorded according to size, type and frequency. It was found that plant height and bract diameter were reduced by irradiation only when the shoots from which cuttings were made were present at the time of irradiation. Most of the changes in bract color were found on Mikkelpink, the periclinal chimera. Changesfrom pink to red or white occurred at about the same frequency, these sectors became fewer and larger as successive crops of cuttings were removed from the mother plants

Reproduction of Lindera melissafolia in Arkansas

Field reproduction was investigated in several populations of the endangered dioecious species Lindera melissifolia. Fruit set was light and erratic, and even where fruiting was heavy no effective seed bank was found. Field transplantation of greenhouse-grown seedlings was successful for one growing season. Rhizome sprouting was widespread, and produced rapid recovery from fire. Without enhancement of natural reproduction, the species will probably decline

Building rapport for online instructors

Online instruction continues to play an increasing role in secondary education. While strides have been made in both the number and variety of offerings, providing the interactions of the traditional classroom remains problematic. The benefits of rapport, in both traditional and online classes, include improved classroom and course management, higher student motivation, enhanced communication between students and instructors, and improved learning outcomes. Strong rapport in online learning environments is viewed positively by both students and faculty members. However, answers to the question as to which instructor traits support the building of rapport remains largely unanswered

Photosynthetic Efficiency of Drought-Induced Leaves in Neviusia alabamensis

Plants in one stand of Neviusia alabamensis Gray (Rosaceae), a rare shrub, became drought deciduous in July, 1990, and grew new leaves following rains in August. In September the photosynthetic efficiency of the new leaves was compared with that of old leaves in another stand of the same population. Although leaf area from regrowth was much less than old leaf area retained, photosynthetic efficiency in new leaves was about 3 times higher than in old leaves. This response is discussed in terms of compensation for drought-induced loss of leaves

Groundwater Hydrology of a Population of Lindera melissifolia in Arkansas

Groundwater hydrology was monitored from October through August in and around a bottomland forest pond containing Lindera melissifolia, pondberry. The study site exhibited a series of low ancient dunes and depressions, with seasonal ponds in the depressions. Ponds showed no surface inlets or outlets. Shallow wells were made and soil cores removed along a transect from the top of one dune across the pond to a lower dune. Piezometers were installed in the wells and groundwater levels monitored. Soil core samples were analyzed to determine particle size distribution at soil profile positions selected during field analysis. It was shown that a subsurface hydrologic gradient exists between surrounding dune slopes and the pond bottom, delivering groundwater to the pond during the season when precipitation exceeds evapotranspiration. The hydrologic gradient was shown to be substrate-dependent

Not So Rare: Errors of Metabolism during the Neonatal Period

During the neonatal period, the diagnosis of an error of metabolism (EM) was once thought to portend a poor prognosis or lethality. Over the past two decades, the prognosis of many EMs has changed. The critical aspect of the metabolic evaluation in a sick newborn is to rapidly identify whether there may be a metabolic problem. If there is a metabolic problem, the goal is to minimize the sequelae of the specific disorder. This review will explore how to approach and evaluate a newborn suspected of having an EM. A discussion of clinical and laboratory findings that often accompany EM will be included

Dr. Kenneth P. Pruess Obituary

Dr. Kenneth P. Pruess, age 84, of Lincoln, Nebraska, died 11 December 2016. Kenneth was Professor of Entomology Emeritus at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He was born 21 June 1932 in Troy, Indiana, to Elmer and Clara (Grass) Pruess. Kenneth graduated from Purdue University in 1954 and earned his M.S. in Entomology in 1955 and Ph.D. in 1957, both from The Ohio State University. His dissertation was titled “Studies on the Clover Root Borer, Hylastinus obscurus (Marsham).” He married Neva Currie on 15 June 1963. He worked at the University of Nebraska’s North Platte Experiment Station from 1957–1965, Entomology Department at UNL from 1965–1997, and was Entomology Department UNL Emeritus from 1997 until the time of his death, continuing his research until 8 December 2016. Throughout his career, Kenneth conducted research on a wide variety of topics. Initially, he was hired at North Platte to study the army cutworm, Euxoa auxiliaris (Grote), which was a major pest of wheat in western Nebraska. He published several studies that helped document their summer migration from the Great Plains to the Rockies. One of these he co-authored with his wife, who also had graduate training in entomology. They used binoculars to track the direction of flight at night of army cutworm moths by watching them as they flew in front of the moon. He began long-range studies of the population dynamics of rangeland grasshoppers, which continued for decades after he moved to Lincoln. He was an early adopter of using microcomputers in teaching and developed programs for computer modeling in pest management. He conducted several studies on biology and management of western corn rootworms, including a 1968–1970 study on areawide management of adult rootworms over a 16-square-mile area. His study was the first to evaluate the potential of areawide management of corn rootworms. Later, he began studies on natural history of aquatic insects, particularly focused on black flies. He used molecular techniques to study black fly taxonomy and then alfalfa weevil taxonomy. The week of his death, he was working on finalizing a manuscript on alfalfa weevil molecular taxonomy for journal submission