Alex Christensen 10/21/2014 Bio 203 Lab Glaucomys sabrinus: Habit and Geography/ Forms and Function One of the most biologically complex organisms across all ecosystems is the northern flying squirrel (G. sabrinus). In the most general sense, the northern flying squirrel can be labeled an occupant of boreal conifer and mixed forests and an organism who has developed the ability to glide from tree to tree (Smith et al. 2011, Thorington and Santana 2007, Weigl 2007). This basic overview of the G. sabrinus, however, does not even begin to show the complexity of this organism’s lifestyle and the various functions that allow it to survive. This organism also serves as a very precise indicator of an ecosystems health; recently G. sabrinus has been …show more content…
2011). In the past, G. sabrinus, especially in the case of females, could be characterized as an organism who remained relatively distant from each other (Smith et al. 2011). This meant that females would share little foraging territory and nesting sites prior to deforestation (Smith et al. 2011). As a result of the harvesting of the boreal forests of the northern United States and Canada, the northern flying squirrel has been forced to group much closer together and both the northern flying squirrel and its primary predator, the northern spotted owl, are now endangered (Smith et al. 2011, Weigl 2007). The changes that can be seen in terms of spatial organization of G. sabrinus are the following: 1) overlap of northern flying squirrel foraging zones has depleted necessary food sources because they have been forced to compete for resources and 2) female G. sabrinus have become increasingly aggressive around den sites (Smith et al. 2011). Also, some interesting evidence has shown some isolated sharing of nest sites between G. sabrinus females due to increasing home range overlap, even though there is no evidence of female-female attractions within this species (Smith et al. 2011). Forage zone sharing and the isolated nest sharing among females are more good examples of the northern flying squirrels …show more content…
Small tree squirrels like the Sciurini are very good leapers and use the ability to jump from tree to tree to avoid predators, however, small tree squirrels are unable to leap as far as larger tree squirrels so the ability to glide is more advantageous to smaller squirrels then to larger ones (Thorington and Santana 2007). Also, due to the fact that smaller squirrels reach lower velocities upon falling, smaller squirrels would be safer if such a situation occurred and they would be less likely to become injured (Thorington and Santana 2007). Due to these factors, the conclusion that northern flying squirrels evolved from small squirrels is justified. Overall, the evolution of gliding in small tree squirrels allows them to more successfully avoid predators, find food more quickly, and increases the safety of the squirrel as it moves around its’ habit (Thorington and Santana 2007). The anatomical manifestation of this evolution is the patagium which is lined with muscle called the platysma II extending from the wrist to the body and from the body to the ankle (Thorington and Santana 2007). Unlike other flying squirrels, the northern flying squirrel does not possess what is called an uropatagium which extends from the ankle to the tail, despite this, G. sabrinus is a very adept glider. Another adaptation that is believed to have occurred is the
Melbourne is located in the south-eastern part of mainland Australia, within the state of Victoria. Geologically, it is built on the confluence of Quaternary lava flows to the west, Silurian mudstones to the east, and Holocene sand accumulation to the southeast along Port Phillip. The southeastern suburbs are situated on the Selwyn fault which transects Mount Martha and Cranbourne.
During the summer of 1979, Doug Sulliman was part of a bumper crop of future NHLers chosen in the opening round of the league’s annual entry draft. Included were the likes of Mike Gartner, Rick Vaive, Ray Bourque, Paul Reinhart and Michel Goulet.
The eastern fox squirrel (Sciurus niger) is the largest tree squirrel [1]. The animal is 10 to 15 inches and possesses three diverse color patterns. Firstly, in the southern segment of its range, this creature is dark with a white tip on its tail and a white band of color on its face. Secondly, in the northeastern part of its body, it has a gray appearance above with yellowish undersides. Thirdly, in the western section of its body, it is dark above and has a rust color underneath. This creature is a solitary animal, even though it shares a feeding territory with other squirrels. The eastern fox squirrel commonly occurs in the central and the eastern United States west to the Texas Colorado, and Dakotas [1]. It does not inhabit New England, most of eastern and northern Pennsylvania, western New
The Allegheny woodrat (Neotoma magister) is a small mammal that is endemic to the United States. They live in the eastern part of the United States in deciduous forests. Their species can be found from the Appalachian Mountains through the interior Highland regions, including western Connecticut to northern Alabama (Castleberry et al 2006). Woodrats are restricted to areas that have rocky structures such as caves, fissures, and boulder piles and live within the spaces between rocks (Castleberry et al. 2006). Rocky habitats are good living spaces for them because the crevices provide protection from predators and also create a den environment for young to develop. Since rocky areas are usually distributed in patches throughout an environment, woodrats are considered to be metapopulations because their populations are separated (Castleberry et al. 2002). Other animals that can be found using the same rocky habitats for denning, roosting, or nesting include the Rafinesque 's big-eared bat (Corynorhinus rafinesquii), Townsend 's big-eared bat (C. townsendii), common raven (Corvus corax), long-tailed weasel (Mustela frenata), eastern small-footed myotis (Myotis leibii), eastern spotted skunk (Spilogale putorius), and American black bear (Ursus americanus) (Castleberry et al. 2006). The different types of species that live in the community creates competition and leaves woodrat populations vulnerable. Competition and predators are examples of factors that
Other than being a professor in biology, medicine, research, etc. Sabeti is also the lead singer and writer for the rock band Thousand Days. In her spare time, she enjoys playing volleyball and tennis. She participates in Harvard’s summer volleyball league and join tennis competition during her high school and college year. Sabeti have interest in extreme activities like cliff climbing and ATV. On July 17, 2015 she suffered a near-fatal accident at a conference in Montana. She was a passenger on an ATV that went over a cliff, and catapulted onto boulders. She shattered her pelvis and knees, and sustained a brain injury but was able to recover and she return to
Pardis Sabeti is an Iranian-American biologist, medial geneticist and evolutionary geneticist. She was born on 25th December 1975 in Tehran and grew up in Florida. Her parents came to the United States during the Iranian Revolution in 1979. As a kid, she was drawn to creative writing and want to be a novelist. That followed with wanting to be a doctor. Dr. Sabeti has become a professor at the Center for System Biology and Department of Organismic and Evolutionary Biology at Harvard, and a senior associate at the Board Institute.
The gopher tortoise plays a crucial role in many ecosystems across the United States including places such as Alabama, Mississippi, South Carolina, Georgia, and Louisiana. Gopher tortoises get their name from the burrows they dig, similar to gophers, that assist in many processes in the tortoise’s ecosystem. When digging these burrows, tortoises are returning leached nutrients back to the surface. Also, because these animals graze on vegetation, they become important components in the spreading of seeds of different plants many animals feed on. Gopher tortoises also tend to move from burrow to burrow rather quickly, leaving them vacant, providing other animals homes. These animals include those such as foxes, gopher
This Hypogeum of Hal Saflieni, Malta (Link 5-a) is a series of built in odd and disorderly fashion, which are linked by passages, stairways and caverns. This is the only available underground structure of the Bronze Age whose creation was completed even before that of Great Pyramid and Stonehenge. Built during 3600 to 2500 BC, its weird architecture consists of many vaults, domes, spirals, carved pillars, niches and corbelled arches. This place has been shrouded in mystery and a center of attraction for architects, archeologists, acoustic experts, anthropologists, forensic experts, neurologists, and psychologists for certain reasons.
Siegfried Loraine Sassoon, CBE, MC (8 September 1886 – 1 September 1967) was an English poet, writer, and soldier. Decorated for bravery on the Western Front,[1] he became one of the leading poets of the First World War. His poetry both described the horrors of the trenches, and satirised the patriotic pretensions of those who, in Sassoon's view, were responsible for a jingoism-fuelled war.[2] Sassoon became a focal point for dissent within the armed forces when he made a lone protest against the continuation of the war in his "Soldier's Declaration" of 1917, culminating in his admission to a military psychiatric hospital; this resulted in his forming a friendship with Wilfred Owen, who was greatly influenced by him. Sassoon later won acclaim
Although Amanita phalloide resembles a small and adorable umbrella, its dreadful virulence is extremely hazardous. Amanita phalloides is one of the most poisonous of all known toadstools and it is estimated that only half a mushroom contains enough toxin to kill an adult person. It has proved that possibly the deaths of Roman Emperor Claudius in AD 54 and Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI in 1740 is caused by it. The principal toxic constituent is α-amanitin, a highly stable protein that the body has great difficulty in completely eliminating, which damages the liver and kidneys, causing hepatic and renal failure that can be fatal. The specific reason why alpha amanitin has such strong effect is that it is a potent inhibitor of DNA-dependent RNA polymerase II. It obstructs the formation of mRNA, eventually stops the constitution of protein and induces apoptosis especially in
The camera trap photographed both juvenile and adult flying squirrels. The adult flying squirrels were clearly larger than the juveniles, but whether the photographed adult(s) represented only a single individual and the mother of the juveniles could not be inferred. The juvenile Siberian flying squirrels were photographed only in daytime from August 15 to 19 and during both day and night from August 29 to September 2, 2013 (Fig. 1). Thereafter, the juveniles were photographed at night-time only, from September 3 to 9 (Fig. 1).
The first thing I will be talking about are some squirrel adaptations. They have adapted strong muscles in their forearms, abdominal, and paws. This helps the squirrels climb and jump between trees; the powerful forearm and paw muscles grab the branches when they land. Their sharp, curved claws also help while climbing and jumping to grab the tree better so they don’t fall onto the ground. If they didn’t have some of these adaptations then it would make their life harder and maybe even lead to extinction.
With the rapid growth of the American population and the greater demand for work, large urban areas developed throughout the U.S. landscape. Urbanization, as it is called, is the replacement of the rural areas with more urban ones. Urbanization has impacted human behavior and wildlife as well and most likely won’t be ending anytime soon as humanity continues to push into wildlife habitats. As relative keepers of the environment, humans need to understand the impacts of urbanization on the environment and ecosystem as a whole (Warren et al. 2006). These characteristics are exhibited in urban squirrel (Sciurus carolinensi) populations.
Zhou, Z., 2004. The origin and early evolution of birds: discoveries, disputes, and perspectives from fossil evidence. Naturwissenschaften, 91(10),
As the global human population continues to increase, the amount of urbanization increases with it. According to Jokimaki et al. (2017), global urban land cover will increase by about 30-fold in less than 20 years. With such a change in the human population and amount of urbanization, it leaves the question of what will happen to the amount of biodiversity and well-being of all the wildlife on the planet. An urban environment is considered one that has a high density of a human population and buildings, and a high concentration of food, waste, water, energy, and pollution (McCleery and Parker 2011). The habitats of animals now located in urban environments, squirrels in particular, are being completely changed, if not destroyed, which leaves them to either go extinct, or adapt to the ever-changing scenery that is tailored to the human world. Research has shown that squirrels are adapting to the urbanized world, however, wildlife populations in urban settings often demonstrate different movements, physiology, habitat selection, and behaviors than those that are found in rural settings (McCleery and Parker 2011). Their movement patterns are likely to be modified in response to changes in environmental conditions that are brought about by urbanization (Reher et al. 2016). Fey et al. (2016) observed