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Individual, Social, and Seasonal Behavior of the Thirteen-Lined Ground Squirrel (Spermophilus tridecemlineatus)

Description: The purpose of this study is to provide a qualitative, detailed description of individual and social behavior in a free-living population of thirteen-lined ground squirrels. Behavioral differences in relation to various periods of the annual cycle are also evaluated.
Date: January 1970
Creator: Wistrand, Harry E.
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Food, Feeding Selectivity, and Ecological Efficiencies of Fundulus notatus (Rafinesque) (Osteichthyes; Cyprinodontidae)

Description: This study was made to further define the trophic dynamics of Fundulus notatus by determining its ration composition under natural conditions, measuring feeding selectivity under various laboratory conditions of prey-species composition and availability, and determining the efficiencies with which F. notatus utilizes ingested chironomid larvae.
Date: August 1970
Creator: Atmar, Gerald Legare
open access

The Influence of a Return of Native Grasslands upon the Ecology and Distribution of Small Rodents in Big Bend National Park

Description: In the southwestern United States there is a delicate balance between the existing grasslands and the rodent fauna. The purpose of this investigation was to determine the influence of secondary succession of native grasslands upon the ecology and distribution of small rodents. Two methods of determining the rodent species were plot quadrates and trap lines using Sherman live traps.
Date: August 1971
Creator: Baccus, John T.
open access

Carbon Flux in Reservoir Sediments

Description: The central objective of the study was to fractionate sedimenting organic materials according to their source (allochthonous or autochthonous) and ultimately to determine the degree of biodegradability of contributions from either source with particular reference to activities at the mud-water interface.
Date: May 1973
Creator: Newton, Charles Eugene
open access

Trophogenic Ecology of Selected Southwestern Reservoirs

Description: Three north central Texas reservoirs (Grapevine Reservoir, Lake Ray Hubbard, Lewisville Reservoir) were investigated in order to characterize the nutritional ecology, phytoplankton community structure, and primary productivity within the trophogenic zones of each. Emphasis was placed on elucidating the relative influences of the major nutrients (C, N, P, Fe, Si) and various other physico-chemical parameters on phytoplankton community biomass, structure, and productivity. Extensive physical, che… more
Date: May 1973
Creator: McDaniel, Michael David
open access

Biological Nitrogen Fixation in Two Southwestern Reservoirs

Description: This investigation has determined the presence of biological nitrogen fixation in two reservoirs in the southwestern United States: Lake Arlington and Lake Ray Hubbard. Subsequent tests have gathered baseline data on the effects of various biological, chemical, and physical parameters on in situ nitrogen fixation in these reservoirs. Of specific importance is the relationship between nitrogen fixation arid occasional blooms of blue-green algae which produce such problems as testes and odors in … more
Date: August 1973
Creator: Lawley, Gary G.
open access

The Vertical Stratification of the Macrobenthos in the Brazos River, Texas

Description: Quantification of stream macrobenthos populations has remained a perplexing problem in rivbrine ecology, despite numerous attempts at improvement. This is in part due to well documented variations in chemical and physical parameters locally and geographically, and resultant adapted macrobenthos populations. Southwood (1968) and Hynes (1970a) have reviewed the various sampling techniques developed'for the census of lotic macrobenthos populations. Needham and Usinger (1956), Chutter (1969), and o… more
Date: December 1973
Creator: Poole, Walton Charles
open access

The Distribution of Pathogenic Pseudomonas aeruginosa in Sewage

Description: The purpose of this study was to extend our understanding of the ecological relationships of P. aeruginosa by investigating the differences or similarities between the strains of this organism found in sewage and those found as pathogens in human infections. This research was approached by comparing the serological types of P. aeruginosa isolated from sewage contaminated waters in Argentina (South America) to those isolated from sewage contaminated waters in Texas. They were typed with sera obt… more
Date: May 1974
Creator: Labay, Joseph Edward
open access

Microbiological Treatment of Wastewater from a Wood-Preserving Plant

Description: This research investigates interacting biological, chemical, and physical factors affecting the efficiency of microbiological wastewater treatment at the W. J. Smith Wood- Preserving Company in Denison, Texas. The treatment process consisted of collecting exhaust boiler water containing unidentified boiler treatment compounds, steam condensate contaminated with preservatives and wood extracts, plant process waters, and rainfall runoff from plant grounds. With a 5-minute residence time, wastewat… more
Date: August 1974
Creator: Ralston, James R.
open access

The Stoneflies (Plecoptera) of Texas

Description: An illustrated key to the adults and known nymphs of Texas Plecoptera is provided. Species accounts, including geographic distribution within Texas, and biological notes are given. Of the twenty-seven species of Plecoptera known from Texas, six are new state records. TWo species new to science, Isoperla jewetti and Isoperla coushatta are described. Taeniopteryx starki Stewart and Szczytko, Zealeuctra arnoldi Ricker and Ross, and Zealeuctra hitei Ricker and Ross are endemic to the Edwards Platea… more
Date: May 1975
Creator: Szczytko, Stanley W.
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The Detection of Poliovirus in Denton Sewage by Immunofluorescence and Immunodiffusion Techniques

Description: Several final sewage effluents from the Denton Disposal Plant were demonstrated to contain Poliovirus types II and III. Pleated encapsulated filters at pH3.5 enhanced the recovery of the Poliovirus at a higher tier in comparison with nitrocellulose filter (Millipore) and glass fiber filter of pore size 0.45u. This thesis explores problems that face us today in our quest to eliminate viral pathogens from the natural and waste water needed for human, domestic, and industrial consumption. Prelimin… more
Date: August 1975
Creator: Olaiya, Felix Ayodele
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Genic Differentiation and Evolution in the Ground Squirrel Subgenus Ictidomys (Spermophilus)

Description: The genetic structure of 26 natural populations of three species (S. tridecemlineatus, S. mexicanus, and S. spilosoma) of the Ictidomys subgenus of ground squirrels was analyzed using chromosomal and electrophoretic techniques. Chromosomal variation was not observed in S. mexicanus, and only slight karyotypic variation was found in the other two species. Chromosomal evidence indicated hybridization between S. tridecemlineatus and S. mexicanus, placing these species within the classical definiti… more
Date: December 1975
Creator: Cothran, E. Gus, 1951-
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Food Habits of Stoneflies (Plecoptera) in the Gunnison and Dolores Rivers, Colorado

Description: Gut contents of 2,500 stonefly nymphs, comprising 10 species, from the Gunnison and Dolores Rivers, Colorado were examined from Dec., 1974-Oct., 1975. Perlidae species were carnivorous feeding primarily on chironomids, mayflies and caddisflies. Seasonal patterns of ingestion and preference varied among species and predator sizes and between rivers. Early instar polyphagous species utilized detritus in the fall, eventually shifting to carnivorous habits as they grew through winter-spring. Pteron… more
Date: August 1976
Creator: Fuller, Randall L.
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Aspects of the Thermal Ecology of Largemouth Bass (Micropterus salmoides) in North Central Texas

Description: The coefficient of body temperature change (K) ranged from -0.53 to -0.072 for bass weighing 73-1440 g. The double log regression of K on weight was similar to that reported for other poikilotherms (slope = -0.57; R = 0.93). Fingerling bass were eurythermal, being capable of surviving instantaneous temperature changes over a 20 C range at acclimation temperatures of 15, 25 and 30 C and over a 15 C range at acclimation temperatures of 20 and 35 C. Preferred temperatures for adult bass measured i… more
Date: December 1976
Creator: Venables, Barney J.
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Comparative Chemistry of Thermally Stressed North Lake and Its Water Source, Elm Fork Trinity River

Description: To better understand abiotic dynamics in Southern reservoirs receiving heated effluents, water was analyzed before and after impoundment in 330 ha North Lake. Macronutrients, metals, and chlorinated hydrocarbons were measured. Concentrations of nutrients and metals in sediments were quantified in this 2 yr study. River water prior to impoundment contained 16 times more total phosphorus, and supported 23 times more Selenastrum capricornutum cells in an algal assay than reservoir water. The reser… more
Date: December 1976
Creator: Sams, Barry L.
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The Relation Between Carbon Assimilation and Biomass Dynamics in a Phytoplankton Community

Description: Production dynamics in the phytoplankton community of a mesotrophic Texas reservoir were measured weekly over a four month period using 14C incubation and ATP assay methodologies. Assimilation values of 14C ranged from 0.2 to 45 ug C 1 hr1 - . Significant positive and occasionally negative changes in biomass (i.e. viable organic carbon) were observed in short term (4 hr) in situ incubations juxtapo-sitioned with the 14C experiments; viable organic carbon production, estimated with the ATP assay… more
Date: December 1977
Creator: Wilcox, Douglas P.
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Nymphs of the Stonefly (Plecoptera) Genus Taeniopteryx of North America

Description: Nymphs of the 9 Nearctic Taeniopteryx species were reared and studied, 1976-78. Two morphologically allied groupings, the Taeniopteryx burksi-maura, and T. litalonicera- starki complexes corresponded with adult complexes. A key separating 7 species, based primarily upon pigment patterns and abdominal setal arrangements, was constructed. Taeniopteryx lita and T. starki were indistinguishable; T. burksi was separated from T. maurawhen no developing femoral spur was present. This study was based u… more
Date: May 1978
Creator: Fullington, Kate Matthews
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Production and Energy Metabolism in Three Benthic Insect Populations in a Small North Central Texas Pond

Description: Annual energy budgets of dominant benthic macro-invertebrates were examined during November 1973 to October 1974 from the benthos of a small pond ecosystem in north-central Texas. Estimates of annual secondary production (Hynes and Coleman 1968) were Procladius s. (Diptera, Chironimidae), 2.4 g m^-2 y^-1 (13 kcal m^-2 y^-1 ); Tendipes decorus (Diptera, Chironomidae), 6.0 g m^-2 y^-1 (40 kcal m^-2 y^-1 ); Brachycercus sp. (Ephemeroptera, Caenidae), 1.9 g m^-2 y^-1 (11 kcal m^-2 y^-1). Energy met… more
Date: May 1978
Creator: Benson, Daniel J.
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Thermal Selection at an Enzyme Locus in Populations of the Red Shiner, Notropis lutrensis, Receiving Hypolimnion Effluents from a Reservoir

Description: Genetic variation was examined at 19 loci encoding enzymatic and general proteins Notropis lutrensis from the Brazos River in Texas. The thermal regime of the Brazos River below Possum Kingdom Reservoir is altered due to the release of water from the hypolimnion. Summer water temperatures fluctuate as much as 7^oC. Levels of heterozygosity at the malate dehydrogenase-2 locus were correlated with the degree of water temperature fluctuation at each locality. The isozymes from three homozygous pat… more
Date: May 1978
Creator: Richmond, M. Carol
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Trophic Structure and Energy Flow in a Texas Pond

Description: Annual energy flow and mean annual biocontent of eighteen compartments were determined for a 0.94 ha north central Texas pond ecosystem. Annual primary production was 7,780 kcal m^-2 yr^-2, and community production-to-respiration ratio was 1.49. One-third of annual primary production accumulated on the substrate as silt and sedimentation. Community production, production-respiration ratio, and biocontents of all compartments except aquatic insects were large in summer, small in winter. Bioconte… more
Date: August 1978
Creator: Childress, William M.
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Distribution, Abundance, and Food Habits of Larval Fish in a Cooling Reservoir

Description: Analysis of larval fish collected at four stations in a 330-ha cooling reservoir indicated Dorosoma spp. were most numerous at all stations, followed by Lepomis spp. and Percina Macrolepida. Largest numbers and greatest diversity of larval fish were found at the station least affected by thermal effluent; the mid-lake station provided the smallest numbers and least diversity. The two warmwater stations were intermediate, with similar numbers and diversity. Diversity and abundance of zooplankton… more
Date: December 1978
Creator: Mitterer, Lana Gayle
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Pelagic Phytoplankton and Physicochemical Correlates for Lake Texoma

Description: An analysis and correlation of phytoplankton communities with physicochemical data from 3 sites in Lake Texoma was conducted to supplement time-series data. Water and phytoplankton were sampled monthly, March, 1976-February, 1977. Simple correlations were run between all physicochemical parameters and phytoplankton standing crop from the 3 sites. Multiple linear regression analyses were used to develop equations predictive of phytoplankton standing crop and chloride concentration. Minerals leac… more
Date: December 1978
Creator: McCullough, William P.
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Seasonal and Spatial Variability of the Microcrustacean Community in Lake Texoma, Texas and Oklahoma

Description: Twenty-eight species of zooplankton were identified from Lake Texoma. Seasonal density of the overall microcrustacean community and seasonal cycles of individual species were compared with northern populations and any available literature from the Southwest. Cycles of occurrence and abundance were similar to those observed in northern populations but tended to occur earlier in the year due to higher temperatures. Spatial distributions within the reservoir were heavily influenced by nutrient and… more
Date: August 1980
Creator: Crist, Lawrence W.
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