The tropical rainforests of Africa make up one of the largest rainforest blocks in the world, second only to the Amazon Rainforest of South America. This area hosts an incredible diversity of plants and animals and contains three of the world’s biodiversity hotspots, indicative …
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Reptiles inhabiting shrub-steppe ecosystems of the Intermountain West have adapted to harsh, unpredictable desert conditions, yet recent changes in disturbance regimes may put species at risk. In southwest Idaho, cheatgrass ( Bromus tectorum ) has altered the fire regime resulti…
In this dissertation, I combine population genetic and demographic history analyses of autosomal, mitochondrial and Y-chromosome genetic markers with spatially explicit modeling techniques to study the biogeographic mechanisms responsible for shaping patterns of genetic diversit…
Quercus wislizenii and Q. parvula are evergreen oaks of California. The latter was recognized as a species distinct from Q. wislizenii only recently, but has not received full acceptance. In an attempt to study differentiation between these two taxa and the genetic architecture …
Stomatopods are behaviorally complex marine crustaceans found throughout tropical and subtropical seas. In this study, stomatopods are examined at three levels: parental care behavior, population genetic structure, and mitochondrial genome organization and phylogeny. Monogamy an…
It has been argued that male-female post-mating interactions drive rapid divergence of reproductive proteins between populations, leading to reproductive isolation and speciation. Here I report on three studies of Drosophila melanogaster populations that aim to shed light on the…
The first objective of this dissertation was to incorporate phylogenetic analysis to anaspidean systematics using the available morphological data. Cladistic analysis agreed with the current taxonomic classifications based on morphology, and resolved the placement of Akera withi…
The Caspian region and specifically the Apsheron peninsula of Azerbaijan is known to be polluted with a variety of environmental contaminants, making risk assessment difficult. The wetlands of Sumgayit contain particularly complex mixtures of contaminants. Flow cytometry and the…
Oceanographic features such as currents, fronts and upwelling cells have been recognised as possible factors driving population differentiation within species. The Benguela Current is one of the oldest upwelling systems in the world, located off the west coast of Southern Africa…
Understanding the degree of connectivity among populations, forming migratory links and evaluating factors that influence reproductive fitness is fundamental for the successful management of migratory species of conservation concern. In this thesis I focus on a regionally import…
Freshwater streams in the developed world are becoming increasingly dominated by treated wastewater. Continually discharged into most surface waters, these effluents contain a suite of bioactive man-made chemicals, including steroid and non-steroid oestrogens, which have been fo…
The accurate assessment of forest persistence under environmental change is dependent on the fundamental understanding of the genetic consequences of human intervention and its comparison to that of natural processes, as declines in genetic diversity and changes in its structuri…
Increasing human pressure combined with sea level rise and increased storminess is threatening coastal ecosystems around the world. Among these ecosystems, saltmarshes are particularly endangered due to their position in temperate areas with low wave action where human density i…
Correct species identification is fundamental to all areas of biology, but particularly the policy related areas of conservation and fisheries management. To enable guidelines to be developed for environmental management and conservation, such identifications need links to studi…
Conservation biologists have used reintroduction as a method to reestablish extirpated species in their native habitat. Three important aspects of a successful reintroduction effort include: (1) a habitat suitability study of the reintroduction area, including effects of migrati…
The intraspecific phylogeography and population genetics of three cave-dwelling bat species (namely Miniopterus schreibersii, Rhinolophus ferrumequinum and Myotis capaccinii) in southeastern Europe and Anatolia were investigated using mitochondrial and nuclear DNA markers. The m…
The Cross River gorilla (Gorilla gorilla diehli), a recently revived fourth subspecies of gorilla, is the most endangered and poorly studied ape taxon. Only about 300 Cross River gorillas remain and these gorillas occur in at least eleven different localities. This dissertation …
Indonesia is a center of marine biodiversity and its coral reef ecosystems are some of the most threatened worldwide. To help address questions related to the ecology and conservation of these important reefs, I applied a population genetic approach to understand the connectivit…
Advances in molecular genetics have given us tools to address questions in wildlife species at levels of biological organization directly relevant to managers. Thus, the development of genetic markers for use in wildlife species such as the wild turkey is a high priority for the…