Master of Science / Biology / Alice Boyle / Dispersal is a behavior common to virtually all taxa with important consequences for gene flow, demography, and conservation. Mobile animals such as birds frequently engage in breeding dispersal, but the factors shaping this behavior are not well understood. In mid-continental grasslands, preliminary evidence suggested that Grasshopper Sparrows (Ammodramus savannarum) engaged in breeding dispersal within a single breeding season. This intriguing pattern shaped my research questions: (1) what are the patterns of within-season breeding dispersal in Grasshopper Sparrows? (2) why do some individual sparrows disperse, and others do not? and (3) what shapes settlement decisions following dispersal? I tested hypotheses based on spatial and temporal variation in nest predation, nest parasitism, and food availability. I studied Grasshopper Sparrows at 18 experimentally-managed watersheds with different fire and grazing regimes at Konza Prairie Biological Station during 2013-2015. To describe patterns, I combined re-sighting of 779 marked individuals, territory mapping, and radio-telemetry to quantify territory densities, turnover, and dispersal distances. To determine if nest predation or nest parasitism affected dispersal, I monitored the fate of 223 nests. I estimated food intake rates using plasma metabolites, and prey availability using sweep sampling. Densities of territorial Grasshopper Sparrows varied seasonally in management-specific ways. Turnover was remarkably high, with over half of territorial males being replaced each month. Over a third of males changed territories within-season, dispersing 0.1-9 km between breeding attempts. Dispersal decisions were related to past nest predation, but not nest parasitism. Dispersal likely yields fitness benefits, as sparrows that dispersed increased their chances of nest survival by 23% relative to site-faithful individuals. However, food availability did not affect settlement decisions. My study provides the first evidence of within-season breeding dispersal in Grasshopper Sparrows, and represents one of few tests of alternative hypotheses explaining dispersal decisions of songbirds. My results are consistent with a growing literature on the role of predation shaping dispersal, but suggest, somewhat surprisingly, that food is not important in post-dispersal habitat selection. High dispersal capacity coupled with adaptability to temporal and spatial change may be typical of grassland songbirds, implying that demographic studies and management decisions must consider their mobility for conservation.

Os gafanhotos da família Ommexechidae são insetos exclusivamente neotropicais, de tamanho moderado, tipicamente achatados dorsoventralmente, com olhos protuberantes e tegumento rugoso. A família era composta, até o início deste trabalho (Ommexechidae sensu lato), por três subfamílias: Aucacridinae, com nove espécies agrupadas em quatro gêneros; Illapeliinae, com uma única espécie; e Ommexechinae, a mais diversa, com 23 espécies distribuídas em oito gêneros. O grupo foi revisado ao longo da década de 70 por Ricardo A. Ronderos, porém nunca foi estudado sob o enfoque filogenético. Este estudo teve como objetivo realizar a primeira análise cladística do grupo, utilizando caracteres exclusivamente morfológicos, de modo a testar a monofilia de todos os gêneros, das subfamílias e da própria família, e propor uma classificação supraespecífica para o grupo com base nos resultados obtidos. Como grupo-externo, foram incluídas quatro espécies de Tristiridae, uma espécie de Proscopiidae, uma de Eumastacidae, duas de Romaleidae e uma de Acrididae, e o enraizamento foi feito no nó que se ligava ao ramo terminal do proscopídeo. Dada a grande disparidade morfológica dos grupos incluídos, principalmente com relação à genitália masculina, diversas novas hipóteses de homologias precisaram ser formuladas para que a análise comparativa pudesse ser realizada. Foram examinados 681 exemplares ao total e propostas sinonímias entre algumas espécies (Ommexecha gracilis = O. brunneri e Clarazella signatifemora; Spathalium audouini = S. liebermanni; Calcitrena maculosa = Tetrixocephalus bilineatus), de modo que restaram 29 espécies como terminais para análise. Foram levantados 139 caracteres, sendo mais da metade destes referentes às genitálias masculina e feminina. Como resultado, foram obtidas duas árvores igualmente parcimoniosas, cujo consenso estrito resultou em uma única árvore com 405 passos. A árvore de consenso apresenta, de modo resumido, a seguinte hipótese de relacionamento: (Proscopiidae (Eumastacidae (Ommexechinae (Aucacridinae (Tristiridae+Illapeliinae (Romaleidae Acrididae)))))). Todos os gêneros de Ommexechidae sensu lato comportam-se como grupos monofiléticos no cladograma de consenso obtido. Contudo, é sugerida a sinonímia entre os gêneros Calcitrena (monotípico) e Tetrixocephalus, que se agrupam em um mesmo clado. As subfamílias de Ommexechidae sensu lato também formam grupos naturais, mas a família como um todo representa um agrupamento polifilético. Desse modo, são propostas algumas mudanças taxonômicas para adequar a definição dos grupos a uma classificação cladística: a única espécie de Illapeliinae é transferida para a família Tristiridae, e as subfamílias Atacamacridinae e Illapeliinae são sinonimizadas com Tristirinae; é definida uma nova família, Aucacrididae, para acomodar as espécies pertencentes até então à subfamília Aucacridinae; e a família Ommexechidae sensu Nov. passa a incluir apenas as espécies que pertenciam à subfamília Ommexechinae / Grasshoppers of the family Ommexechidae are exclusively Neotropical insects, of moderate size, typically dorsoventrally flattened, with protuberant eyes and rough integument. The family consisted, until the beginning of this study (Ommexechidae sensu lato), of three subfamilies: Aucacridinae, with nine species grouped into four genera; Illapeliinae, with a single species; and Ommexechinae, the most diverse one, with 23 species distributed in eight genera. The group was revised in the 70s by Ricardo A. Ronderos, but it had never been studied under a phylogenetic approach. This study aimed to perform the first cladistic analysis of the group, using morphological characters only, in order to test the monophyly of all genera, subfamilies, and the family itself, and propose a supraspecific classification for the group based on the results obtained. As external group, four species of Tristiridae, one of Proscopiidae, one of Eumastacidae, two of Romaleidae and one of Acrididae were included, and the rooting was done on the node that was connected to the terminal branch of the proscopid. Given the wide morphological disparity of the groups included, particularly with respect to male genitalia, several new hypotheses of homologies needed to be formulated so that comparative analysis could be performed. A total of 681 specimens was examined and synonymies were proposed between certain species (Ommexecha gracilis = O. brunneri and Clarazella signatifemora; Spathalium audouini = S. liebermanni; Calcitrena maculosa = Tetrixocephalus bilineatus), so that 29 species remained for analysis. 139 characters were coded, more than half of these related to male and female genitalia. As a result, it was obtained two equally parsimonious trees, whose strict consensus resulted in a single tree with 405 steps. The consensus tree presents, in brief, the following hypothesis of relationship: (Proscopiidae (Eumastacidae (Ommexechinae (Aucacridinae (Tristiridae + Illapeliinae (Romaleidae Acrididae)))))). All genera of Ommexechidae sensu lato behave as monophyletic groups in the consensus cladogram. However, it is suggested a synonymy between the genera Calcitrena (monotypic) and Tetrixocephalus, which are grouped in the same clade. The subfamilies of Ommexechidae sensu lato also form natural groups, but the family as a whole represents a polyphyletic grouping. Thus, some taxonomic changes are proposed to fit the definition of the groups to a cladistic classification: the single species of Illapeliinae is transferred to the family Tristiridae, and the subfamilies Atacamacridinae and Illapeliinae are synonymized under Tristirinae; a new family, Aucacrididae, is defined to accommodate the species which belonged to the subfamily Aucacridinae until then; and the family Ommexechidae is redefined as to include only those species grouped so far in the subfamily Ommexechinae

Grasshopper basin, located in southwest Montana, is an east-tilted graben bounded by the listric Muddy-Grasshopper fault and the Meriwether Lewis fault on the eastern and western margins of the basin, respectively. This basin contains a complex stratigraphy of intertonguing facies comprised of five unconformity-bounded sequences of Tertiary alluvial, flu vial, deltaic, and lacustrine sedimentary and volcanic rocks. Sequence 1 consists of the Challis volcanic Group (Middle Eocene). The sedimentary rocks of the Medicine Lodge beds (Late Eocene-Late Oligocene) represent sequence 2 and approximately 90% of the basin-fill within Grasshopper basin. Sequence 3 consists 11 of the Sedimentary Rocks of Everson Creek (Late Oligocene-Early Miocene), sequence 4 is represented by the Sedimentary Rocks of Bannack Pass (Middle-Late Miocene), and the Six Mile Creek Formation (Late Miocene?) corresponds to sequence 5. Sequence 2 is the synrift deposit for the Muddy-Grasshopper fault, and was dominated by lakes that filled axially by rivers from the north. Transverse sediment influx was present on small fan-delta complexes shed into the lake from the eastern margin and periodic large fluvial-dominated alluvial fan and deltaic deposition from the western margin. Paleocurrent analyses are consistent with these observations and show predominantly south-southeastward axial paleoflow directions with west-directed and east-directed paleoflow on the eastern and western margins, respectively. Petrologic studies, including sandstone petrography and conglomerate petrology, reveal a mixed "basement uplift" and "recycled orogen" tectonic provenance. These findings support a model for Eocene-Oligocene rifting characterized by moderate to high relief superimposed on the Cretaceous-Early Tertiary Sevier fold-and-thrust belt. Paleogeographic reconstructions of Grasshopper basin reveal the lack of a southern basin margin. A correlation of the basin-fill contained in the Medicine Lodge and Horse Prairie basins to the south with the Medicine Lodge beds (sequence 2) in Grasshopper basin suggests that each of these basins represents a third of a larger preexisting extensional basin that was partially dismembered by later phases of continued extension. Large extensional folds in Grasshopper basin had a small influence on facies architecture in the basin.

The field of ecological stoichiometry has been dominated by studies focusing on aquatic & benthic microinvertabrates with less attention given to herbivorous insects. These organisms rely on their food source(s) to supply all of the building blocks (elements) they need in order to complete their life cycle. Since insect herbivores do not have the same elemental composition as the plants they use for food the question arises; of how they go about building themselves. We investigated what happened when grasshoppers were fed diets with various macronutrient profiles, their total amounts, and when the protein quality varied. We discovered that under controlled conditions when using a high quality protein source that grasshoppers are able to maintain a strict level of elemental homeostasis, but that the elements directly related to manipulations made in the food seem to vary (carbon, which is associated with carbohydrates and nitrogen, associated with protein). We also discovered that when the quality of protein changes an immature grasshoppers elemental stoichiometry loses some of this strict homeostatic regulation.

The mechanical behavior of any bone depends upon structural and material properties. Therefore, whole bone, cross-sectional geometric and bone mineral data need to be integrated in studies of bone growth and aging. This dissertation examines femoral growth and aging in the prehistoric Grasshopper Pueblo population of Arizona (A.D. 1275 to 1400). The techniques include osteometrics, computed tomography and photon absorptiometry. Human osteological collections obtained from archaeological sites are useful for studies of bone physiology and mechanics. Even though the subjects are no longer living, non-invasive techniques must often be used because the skeletal collections are data bases for many researchers. This apparently limiting attribute of the sample used in the present study forced the application of computed tomography for analysis of cross-sectional geometry. As the availability of computed tomography to research increases, it will become the method of choice because digital images are well-suited to automated analysis and CT can also provide density data. Variability related to side, age and sex is explored. Additionally, (1) structural properties increase much more than material properties in growth, (2) the morphology of the proximal femoral diaphysis depends more upon the angle of antetorsion than the cervicodiaphyseal angle, (3) there is evidence suggestive of structural compensation for loss of bone mineral in aging, (4) osteoporosis is found not to protect the femoral compartment of the knee joint from osteoarthrosis, (5) the onset of bone loss in females seems to have been early by modern standards, although the rates of loss were similar, and (6) differential bone loss within the femur due to the amount of bone present at maturity and not different rates of loss.

No description available.

Os gafanhotos da família Ommexechidae são insetos exclusivamente neotropicais, de tamanho moderado, tipicamente achatados dorsoventralmente, com olhos protuberantes e tegumento rugoso. A família era composta, até o início deste trabalho (Ommexechidae sensu lato), por três subfamílias: Aucacridinae, com nove espécies agrupadas em quatro gêneros; Illapeliinae, com uma única espécie; e Ommexechinae, a mais diversa, com 23 espécies distribuídas em oito gêneros. O grupo foi revisado ao longo da década de 70 por Ricardo A. Ronderos, porém nunca foi estudado sob o enfoque filogenético. Este estudo teve como objetivo realizar a primeira análise cladística do grupo, utilizando caracteres exclusivamente morfológicos, de modo a testar a monofilia de todos os gêneros, das subfamílias e da própria família, e propor uma classificação supraespecífica para o grupo com base nos resultados obtidos. Como grupo-externo, foram incluídas quatro espécies de Tristiridae, uma espécie de Proscopiidae, uma de Eumastacidae, duas de Romaleidae e uma de Acrididae, e o enraizamento foi feito no nó que se ligava ao ramo terminal do proscopídeo. Dada a grande disparidade morfológica dos grupos incluídos, principalmente com relação à genitália masculina, diversas novas hipóteses de homologias precisaram ser formuladas para que a análise comparativa pudesse ser realizada. Foram examinados 681 exemplares ao total e propostas sinonímias entre algumas espécies (Ommexecha gracilis = O. brunneri e Clarazella signatifemora; Spathalium audouini = S. liebermanni; Calcitrena maculosa = Tetrixocephalus bilineatus), de modo que restaram 29 espécies como terminais para análise. Foram levantados 139 caracteres, sendo mais da metade destes referentes às genitálias masculina e feminina. Como resultado, foram obtidas duas árvores igualmente parcimoniosas, cujo consenso estrito resultou em uma única árvore com 405 passos. A árvore de consenso apresenta, de modo resumido, a seguinte hipótese de relacionamento: (Proscopiidae (Eumastacidae (Ommexechinae (Aucacridinae (Tristiridae+Illapeliinae (Romaleidae Acrididae)))))). Todos os gêneros de Ommexechidae sensu lato comportam-se como grupos monofiléticos no cladograma de consenso obtido. Contudo, é sugerida a sinonímia entre os gêneros Calcitrena (monotípico) e Tetrixocephalus, que se agrupam em um mesmo clado. As subfamílias de Ommexechidae sensu lato também formam grupos naturais, mas a família como um todo representa um agrupamento polifilético. Desse modo, são propostas algumas mudanças taxonômicas para adequar a definição dos grupos a uma classificação cladística: a única espécie de Illapeliinae é transferida para a família Tristiridae, e as subfamílias Atacamacridinae e Illapeliinae são sinonimizadas com Tristirinae; é definida uma nova família, Aucacrididae, para acomodar as espécies pertencentes até então à subfamília Aucacridinae; e a família Ommexechidae sensu Nov. passa a incluir apenas as espécies que pertenciam à subfamília Ommexechinae / Grasshoppers of the family Ommexechidae are exclusively Neotropical insects, of moderate size, typically dorsoventrally flattened, with protuberant eyes and rough integument. The family consisted, until the beginning of this study (Ommexechidae sensu lato), of three subfamilies: Aucacridinae, with nine species grouped into four genera; Illapeliinae, with a single species; and Ommexechinae, the most diverse one, with 23 species distributed in eight genera. The group was revised in the 70s by Ricardo A. Ronderos, but it had never been studied under a phylogenetic approach. This study aimed to perform the first cladistic analysis of the group, using morphological characters only, in order to test the monophyly of all genera, subfamilies, and the family itself, and propose a supraspecific classification for the group based on the results obtained. As external group, four species of Tristiridae, one of Proscopiidae, one of Eumastacidae, two of Romaleidae and one of Acrididae were included, and the rooting was done on the node that was connected to the terminal branch of the proscopid. Given the wide morphological disparity of the groups included, particularly with respect to male genitalia, several new hypotheses of homologies needed to be formulated so that comparative analysis could be performed. A total of 681 specimens was examined and synonymies were proposed between certain species (Ommexecha gracilis = O. brunneri and Clarazella signatifemora; Spathalium audouini = S. liebermanni; Calcitrena maculosa = Tetrixocephalus bilineatus), so that 29 species remained for analysis. 139 characters were coded, more than half of these related to male and female genitalia. As a result, it was obtained two equally parsimonious trees, whose strict consensus resulted in a single tree with 405 steps. The consensus tree presents, in brief, the following hypothesis of relationship: (Proscopiidae (Eumastacidae (Ommexechinae (Aucacridinae (Tristiridae + Illapeliinae (Romaleidae Acrididae)))))). All genera of Ommexechidae sensu lato behave as monophyletic groups in the consensus cladogram. However, it is suggested a synonymy between the genera Calcitrena (monotypic) and Tetrixocephalus, which are grouped in the same clade. The subfamilies of Ommexechidae sensu lato also form natural groups, but the family as a whole represents a polyphyletic grouping. Thus, some taxonomic changes are proposed to fit the definition of the groups to a cladistic classification: the single species of Illapeliinae is transferred to the family Tristiridae, and the subfamilies Atacamacridinae and Illapeliinae are synonymized under Tristirinae; a new family, Aucacrididae, is defined to accommodate the species which belonged to the subfamily Aucacridinae until then; and the family Ommexechidae is redefined as to include only those species grouped so far in the subfamily Ommexechinae

The endeavor for optimization and development in the construction industry is warranted where new solutions are highly sought for. The importance of communication and efficiency in a project planning phase is of highest importance. The objective of this study is to highlight the advantages and disadvantages of a parameter-driven modeling method, by using a Grasshopper software. To explore the possibilities of the software, a script will be created. The script will contain a parallel framework also known as Warren’s framework. In this study, a survey is sent for applicable practitioners in the construction industry where the purpose is to receive information about the industry's opinion about the subject. A parameter-driven modeling method refers to software such as Grasshopper and Dynamo. The software is node-based unlike traditional modeling methods based on manual line drawing. There is no fixed geometry in a parameter-driven modeling software. Therefore, in order to illustrate models, different visualization platforms like Rhino are needed. A considerable amount of time has been spent creating a script in Grasshopper where a user with limited experience will naturally face complications among the way. Many of the survey participants considered that the main con of parametric modeling is the amount of time allocated to creating a script. Thought when the script is completed, changing parameters to influence the model outcome is uncomplicated. Additionally, there is potential regarding time efficiency since the software eliminates all need to perform repetitive tasks. Parametric modeling is a flexible form of work where changes later in a stage are always available.

Flykt i hög hastighet genom stadens raviner och klipplandskap, i en hängande berg-och-dalbanevagn med fötterna dinglande över stadslivet påverkas stadsuppfattningen av det visuella flödet. Hela tiden växlande g-krafter, ett lätt sommarregn och vinden i håret gör stadsupplevelsen fysisk på riktigt. Stockholms landmärken är välbekanta, där de glider i och ur synfältet, men ändå inte. Folk på marken tittar på dig, skrattar. Där! Visst var det din gamla fysiklärare i gathörnet? Borta! Projektet beskriver en berg-och-dalbana i Stockholms City. Banan förbinder Sergels Torg med Stureplan via loopar och svängar över tak, mellan hus, i gränder, över Kungsgatan och stannar till på ett par andra platser. Syftet är flerfaldigt; erbjuda en för storstäder unik typ av sightseeing, skapa möjlighet till den hisnande omedelbara glädjen som bara kan uppstå när kroppen utsätts för kontrollerade g-krafter, vara ett dekorativt slingrande fackverk med organiska stolpar i en hård stadsmiljö och frigöra de krafter som kan uppstå när människan möter staden på ett oväntat sätt. Som en del av projektet har ett flertal digitala verktyg utvecklats för att formge, analysera och simulera en rolig och njutbar berg-och-dalbanefärd. För generering av strukturens form, utifrån åkturens och stadens förutsättningar. För visualiseringar med planer, sektioner, animationer, bl.a. annat via kopplingar till karttjänster på internet. / Flying along the city canyons at high velocity, sitting in an inverted coaster car with feet dangling above the street life, the optical flow alters your visual perception of the city. Constantly changing g-forces, a light rain and the wind in your hair makes the city experience physical. The landmarks of Stockholm are recognized as they enter and exit your field of view, but they feel different. People look at you, laughing. There! Wasn’t that your old physics teacher at the street corner? Gone! The project describes a roller coaster in the CBD of Stockholm, Sweden. The circuit connects Sergels Torg with Stureplan, going through loops and turns, over roofs, between facades, into alleys, along Kungsgatan, making stops at a couple of other places. The purpose is manifold; to provide a unique type of city sightseeing, create an opportunity to experience the specific and immediate happiness that only an abundance of controlled g-forces can give you, to be a decorative, clinging and surprising space truss with organic steel pylons in an otherwise hard city environment, and to release the powers that can ignite, when people get to meet the city in unexpected ways. Part of the project has been the development of a digital toolset to design, analyse and simulate a fun and pleasant roller coaster ride, to generate the geometry of the space truss and pylons, based on the needs of the ride and the city, and to generate plan drawings, sections, animations and connections to geographic data services on the internet.

The Grasshopper basin of southwest Montana is a complex east-dipping graben containing five unconformity-bounded sequences of Tertiary sedimentary rocks. The Eocene-Oligocene basin lies within the northern Rocky Mountain Basin and Range province. Geologic mapping in five and a half 7.5 minute quadrangles indicates that at least three distinct phases of extension characterize the Cenozoic tectonic evolution of Grasshopper basin from approximately 46 Ma toMa. The significant phases of extension in Grasshopper basin were phases 1 and 3. During the first phase of extension (46-27 Ma) the nonplanar Muddy-Grasshopper fault was initiated and 90% of the basin fill was deposited. At least 7 km of dip-slip displacement along this fault controlled the deposition of the Medicine Lodge beds (3.5 km thick) and development of a transverse fold train and a longitudinal anticline. The second phase of extension (late Eocene-early Oligocene) resulted in northwest-southeast trending extensional structures and was probably coincident with deformation along the Lemhi Pass fault (20 km to the southwest). The third phase of deformation (early Oligocene-middle Miocene) dismembered the once larger protobasin into smaller subbasins and tilted the northwest-dipping limb of the longitudinal anticline. The structures formed during this phase have north-south and northeast trends. Little sediment was deposited during phases 2 and 3. Overall >85% E-W extension accrued. Extensional folds are common in Grasshopper basin and formed during all three phases of extension. One orthogonal fold set was recorded. Two-dimensional kinematic analysis of the longitudinal Bachelor Mountain anticline shows that this fold is a double-­rollover that probably developed above a longitudinal ramp in the Muddy-Grasshopper fault. The transverse folds are the result of the changing strike of the downward­-flattening Muddy-Grasshopper fault. A transverse syncline developed above a convex up part of the fault whereas a transverse anticline formed above a concave up part of the fault that reflects changes in the strike of the fault. Three-dimensional inclined shear probably created this geometry.