River otter (Lontra canadensis) use of Phragmites australis and density estimation using genetic techniques" (2011). River otters were extirpated in Nebraska in the early 1900's. In 1986 Nebraska Game and Parks Commission began reintroducing otters. In support of developing an otter management plan, I conducted research on two aspects of otter ecology in Nebraska. First, I examined otter use of...

Increasing the scope and accuracy of information about pinniped diets obtainable from non-invasive techniques is increasingly important, particularly in cases where pinniped species are threatened or endangered. This study is the Wrst to explore the potential for using elemental analysis of the otoliths found in scat to enhance the information available for diet analyses. We investigated the eV...

Noninvasive survey methods based on analyzing DNA extracted from feces can be useful for carnivores that are difficult to study by other methods. Changes in fecal deposition patterns associated with reproduction in kit foxes (Vulpes macrotis) might affect results of such surveys. We used a trained dog to collect fresh scats on 2-km transects in the home ranges of 11 radiocollared female kit fox...

Studying diet is fundamental to animal ecology and scat analysis, a widespread approach, is considered a reliable dietary proxy. Nonetheless, this method has weaknesses such as non-random sampling of habitats and individuals, inaccurate evaluation of excretion date, and lack of assessment of inter-individual dietary variability. We coupled GPS telemetry and scat analyses of black bears Ursus am...

A pyrene end-labeled double hydrophilic diblock copolymer, poly(2-(diethylamino)ethyl methacrylate)-b-poly(2-(dimethylamino)ethyl methacrylate) (Py-PDEA-b-PDMA), was synthesized by sequential monomer addition via oxyanionic polymerization using a 1-pyrenemethanol-based initiator. This diblock copolymer exhibits reversible pH-responsive micellization behavior in aqueous solution, forming PDEA-co...

In May 2016, an outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli O157 infections occurred among children who had played in a stream flowing through a park. Analysis of E. coli isolates from the patients, stream water, and deer and coyote scat showed that feces from deer were the most likely source of contamination.

Top-predators play stabilising roles in island food webs, including Fraser Island, Australia. Subsidising generalist predators with human-sourced food could disrupt this balance, but has been proposed to improve the overall health of the island's dingo (Canis lupus dingo) population, which is allegedly 'starving' or in 'poor condition'. We assess this hypothesis by describing the diet and healt...

BACKGROUND Previous studies have shown an association between adiposity, especially intra-abdominal adipose tissue, and hemodynamic/metabolic comorbidities in adults, however it is not clear in pediatric population. The aim of the study was to analyze the relationship between non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD) and components of metabolic syndrome (MS) with values of intra-abdominal (IAAT...

The ability to measure and monitor wildlife populations is important for species management conservation. use of near-infrared spectroscopy (NIRS) rapidly detect physiological traits from scat other body materials could play an role in the conservation species. Previous research has demonstrated potential NIRS diseases such as novel COVID-19 saliva, parasites feces, numerous animal skin, hair, ...