Vildbiet guldsandbi (Andrena marginata F.) har en central roll i jordbrukslandkapet som en viktig pollinatör av grödor och vilda växter. I Sverige hotas artens fortlevnad av biotopförlust, habitatfragmentering och födobrist. En av de viktigaste näringskällorna är växten ängsvädd (Succisa pratensis M.) som tidigare var vanligt förekommande men som nu minskar i sin utbredning. Syftet med denna studie var att utreda om populationsstorlekarna av guldsandbi och ängsvädd är relaterade. Guldsandbinas observationsbaserad populationsstorlek uppskattades samt att ängsväddens bestånd inventerades vid fyra lokaler i Övre Klarälvsdalen, i norra Värmland. Binas populationsstorlek uppskattades genom transektinventeringar mellan 30 juli och 11 augusti 2013. Under perioden observerades totalt 286 honor och per observationsdag noterades ett medelvärde på 40,86 (± 8,1 SE, 95% konfidensintervall; n=7) honor. Ängsväddpopulationen uppskattades till totalt 2328 växter från alla fyra områden. Det fanns inget statistiskt samband mellan populationsstorlekarna av ängsvädd och guldsandbin. En jämförelse mellan den för biet förväntade populationsstorleken, baserad på förekomst av näringsväxten, och den observerade populationsstorleken, korrigerad för inventeringsbias, visade bra överensstämmelse vid två av fyra områden (8,4% respektive 5,7% från det teoretiska värdet) och dålig överensstämmelse vid de andra två områdena. Det kan mycket väl vara så att det finns en relation mellan populationerna i Övre Klarälvsdalen, men man måste öka antalet lokaler och ta hänsyn till ytterligare miljöfaktorer som påverkar både bina och växterna för att kunna dra säkrare slutsatser om ett samband. / The wild-bee Andrena marginata has a key function as an important pollinator of crops and wild plants in agriculture landscapes. The species’ persistence is threatened in Sweden due to loss of habitat, fragmentation and food scarcity. One of the most important food sources is the plant Succisa pratensis, which previously was very common but now has declining populations. The purpose of this study was to analyse if there was a relation between the population sizes of A. marginata and S. pratensis. The population size of the bees was estimated and the plant population was surveyed at four sites in the upper valley of the River Klarälven, Värmland. Bee population size was estimated by visual transect surveys conducted between 30 July and 11 August 2013. In this period a total of 286 females was observed, with a mean of 40,86 (± 8,1 SE, 95% confidence interval; n=7) per day. The total population size of S. pratensis from the four sites was estimated to 2328 plants. There was no significant correlation between the population sizes of the bees and the host plant. A comparison between the bee’s predicted theoretical population size, based on the number of host plants, and the observed population size, corrected for observer bias, showed good agreement for two of the sites (within 8,4% and 5,7% of the theoretical value) and poor agreement at the other two sites. There may well be a relation between the bee and plant populations in the upper valley of Klarälven, but one needs to increase the number of sites and take into account additional environmental factors that affect both the bees and the plants to draw a firmer conclusion about such a relationship.

Resumo: O objetivo deste estudo foi estimar parâmetros genéticos para caracteres de crescimento e forma em um teste de progênies de Eucalyptus cloeziana, com 24 anos de idade, estabelecido em Luiz Antônio, SP. O teste foi instalado com sementes de polinização aberta provenientes de 35 árvores matrizes oriundas de Helenvale e Cardwell St. Forest, Austrália. O delineamento experimental utilizado foi o de blocos ao acaso, com parcela composta por apenas uma planta, com 100 repetições. O ensaio foi mensurado aos 24 anos de idade para diâmetro a altura do peito (DAP), altura total, volume e forma. Foram detectadas diferenças significativas entre progênies para todos os caracteres avaliados. Foram detectados altos coeficientes de variação genética e herdabilidade para todos os caracteres estudados, o que demonstra um forte controle genético na herança destes e a possibilidade de se obter altos ganhos com a seleção massal e individual entre e dentro de progênies. Os ganhos esperados para plantios com 24 anos de idade, realizados em locais com as mesmas características ambientais de Luiz Antônio e com sementes coletadas após a seleção no teste de progênies, foram estimados em 42,91% para DAP e 16,82% para altura / Abstract: The aim of this study was to estimate genetic parameter for growth and stem shape traits in a progeny test of Eucalyptus cloeziana, at 24 years old, established in Luiz Antônio, SP. The trial was established with open-pollinated seeds from 35 mother trees from provenances Helenvale and Cardwell St. Forest, Australia. The trial was established in a random block design, with single tree plots and 100 replications. The trial was measured at 24 years old of age for diameter at breast height (DBH), total height, volume and stem shape. All studied traits presented significant differences among progenies. All studied traits presented also high coefficient of variation and heritability, showing a strong genetic control in this traits and the possibility to obtain genetic gains by massal and among and within progenies selection. The expected genetic gains for stands with 24 years old, growing in sites with the same environmental characteristics of Luiz Antônio and with seeds collected after selection in the progeny test were estimated in 42.91% for DAP and 16.82% for height / Orientador: Miguel Luiz Menezes Freitas / Coorientador: Mario Luiz Teixeira de Moraes / Banca: Walter Veriano Valério Filho / Banca: Rinaldo César de Paula / Mestre

Made available in DSpace on 2014-06-11T19:29:42Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 Previous issue date: 2010-03-26Bitstream added on 2014-06-13T21:00:02Z : No. of bitstreams: 1 berti_clf_me_ilha.pdf: 1147349 bytes, checksum: 79588686dea2715fc03a56db3c25b881 (MD5) / Universidade Estadual Paulista (UNESP) / O objetivo deste estudo foi estimar parâmetros genéticos para caracteres de crescimento e forma em um teste de progênies de Eucalyptus cloeziana, com 24 anos de idade, estabelecido em Luiz Antônio, SP. O teste foi instalado com sementes de polinização aberta provenientes de 35 árvores matrizes oriundas de Helenvale e Cardwell St. Forest, Austrália. O delineamento experimental utilizado foi o de blocos ao acaso, com parcela composta por apenas uma planta, com 100 repetições. O ensaio foi mensurado aos 24 anos de idade para diâmetro a altura do peito (DAP), altura total, volume e forma. Foram detectadas diferenças significativas entre progênies para todos os caracteres avaliados. Foram detectados altos coeficientes de variação genética e herdabilidade para todos os caracteres estudados, o que demonstra um forte controle genético na herança destes e a possibilidade de se obter altos ganhos com a seleção massal e individual entre e dentro de progênies. Os ganhos esperados para plantios com 24 anos de idade, realizados em locais com as mesmas características ambientais de Luiz Antônio e com sementes coletadas após a seleção no teste de progênies, foram estimados em 42,91% para DAP e 16,82% para altura / The aim of this study was to estimate genetic parameter for growth and stem shape traits in a progeny test of Eucalyptus cloeziana, at 24 years old, established in Luiz Antônio, SP. The trial was established with open-pollinated seeds from 35 mother trees from provenances Helenvale and Cardwell St. Forest, Australia. The trial was established in a random block design, with single tree plots and 100 replications. The trial was measured at 24 years old of age for diameter at breast height (DBH), total height, volume and stem shape. All studied traits presented significant differences among progenies. All studied traits presented also high coefficient of variation and heritability, showing a strong genetic control in this traits and the possibility to obtain genetic gains by massal and among and within progenies selection. The expected genetic gains for stands with 24 years old, growing in sites with the same environmental characteristics of Luiz Antônio and with seeds collected after selection in the progeny test were estimated in 42.91% for DAP and 16.82% for height

Submitted by Renata Lopes (renatasil82@gmail.com) on 2016-10-13T19:51:52Z No. of bitstreams: 1 ceciliafonsecapoggian.pdf: 268787 bytes, checksum: 5898d68297ebccdcc7f27145276525da (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Adriana Oliveira (adriana.oliveira@ufjf.edu.br) on 2016-10-22T13:01:59Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 ceciliafonsecapoggian.pdf: 268787 bytes, checksum: 5898d68297ebccdcc7f27145276525da (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-10-22T13:01:59Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 ceciliafonsecapoggian.pdf: 268787 bytes, checksum: 5898d68297ebccdcc7f27145276525da (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008-02-26 / CNPq - Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico / FAPEMIG - Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de Minas Gerais / Os animais da raça Guzerá, bem adaptados às condições tropicais do Brasil, têm sido utilizados para produção de leite e carne. Em função da redução do tamanho efetivo da população, a probabilidade de endogamia e deriva genética na raça tem aumentado. Em 1994, iniciou-se o Programa Nacional de Melhoramento da Raça para leite por meio do teste de progênie e do núcleo MOET de seleção. O sucesso deste programa pode ser comprometido pelo aumento do coeficiente de endogamia (F) e perda de diversidade genética na raça, pois os animais de maior valor genético são mais utilizados para reprodução. O objetivo deste trabalho foi examinar a diversidade genética da população Guzerá selecionada para leite no Brasil, calcular a endogamia na raça e avaliar seus efeitos sobre características produtivas e reprodutivas, visando monitorar a variabilidade genética e orientar acasalamentos. Dados genealógicos de 10.051 animais nascidos até 2007 foram usados para estimação dos parâmetros populacionais. O coeficiente médio de endogamia dos animais endogâmicos foi 0,025, e o aumento esperado da endogamia, devido à contribuição não balanceada dos fundadores, foi 0,16%. O coeficiente de relação médio entre os indivíduos da população foi estimado em 1,06%, e o intervalo de gerações, em 7,48 anos. A média do tamanho efetivo populacional por geração foi 77, o número efetivo de fundadores, 318, o número efetivo de ancestrais, 101, e o efeito gargalo, 3,15. Dos 2.106 ancestrais, 47 foram responsáveis por 50% da diversidade genética da população referência. As características produção total de leite, produção de leite aos 305 dias de lactação, produção total de gordura, produção total de proteína e idade ao primeiro parto foram afetadas negativamente (p<0,05) pelo aumento do coeficiente de endogamia. Os valores médios de F, até o momento, são baixos, porém, o reduzido tamanho efetivo da população indica riscos de endogamia e perda de variabilidade genética na raça Guzerá selecionada para leite no Brasil. / Animals of the Guzerat breed have strongly fitted to tropical conditions of Brazil, and have been used for milk and beef production. The probability of inbreeding and genetic drift increases due to reduction in the effective population size. In 1994, a selection program for milk production traits was initiated in some purebred herds, using progeny test and MOET nucleus. Its success, otherwise, can be endangered by increase in inbreeding coefficient (F) and loss of genetic diversity, since animals with high genetic value have more chance to reproduce. This study was undertaken to evaluate the evolution and the current genetic status of the Guzerat cattle under milk selection, aiming to monitor the genetic variability and guide matings. Genealogical data of 10,051 animals born until 2007 were used to estimate population parameters. The average F for all inbred animals included in this data set was 0.025 and the increase of inbreeding by unbalancing of founders contribution was 0.16%. The average relationship coefficient was 1.06% and the generation interval was 7.48 years. The mean effective population size by generation was 77, the effective number of founders and effective number of ancestors for the reference population were, respectively, 318 and 101. The bottleneck effect was 3.15. Of 2,106 ancestors, 47 contributed to 50% of the reference population. Total milk production, milk production at 305 days of lactation, total fat production, total protein production and age at first calving was negatively affected (p<0.05) by the increase in F. Average F values and regression coefficients are still low, but the reduced effective population parameters indicates risk of inbreeding, genetic drift and, consequently, loss of variability in the Guzerat breed under milk selection in Brazil.

O presente estudo teve como objetivo avaliar a estrutura populacional, estimar parâmetros (coeficientes de herdabilidade e correlações) e determinar as tendências genéticas e fenotípicas de características de crescimento e adaptação em bovinos da raça Nelore, linhagem Lemgruber. O banco de dados utilizado nas análises constituiu-se de 39.290 animais no arquivo de pedigree e de 24.353 animais no arquivo de produção. Os parâmetros populacionais foram obtidos por meio dos softwares POPREP (GROENEVELD et al., 2009) e ENDOG v 3.2 (GUTIÉRREZ e GOYACHE, 2005). As estatísticas descritivas e os parâmetros genéticos para cada característica estudada foram estimadas por meio de quatro análises hepta-característica utilizando o programa VCE-6 (KOVAC & GROENEVELD, 2003) sob modelo animal completo. As tendências genéticas e fenotípicas foram obtidas pela regressão dos valores genéticos e fenotípicos respectivamente sobre o ano de nascimento dos animais e os coeficientes da regressão foram estimados por meio do método de quadrados mínimos. Apesar da endogamia média do rebanho ser considerada moderada verificou-se alta porcentagem de indivíduos endogâmicos e reduzido tamanho efetivo populacional. Além disso, o incremento contínuo de endogamia ao longo dos anos demonstra a necessidade de intervenção na seleção dos indivíduos para reprodução, de modo que, problemas futuros possam ser evitados. Os coeficientes de herdabilidade direta foram estimados em 0,24, 0,31, 0,31, 0,21, 0,19, 0,30, 0,41, 0,19 e 0,17 respectivamente para peso ao nascimento (PN), peso aos 120 dias de idade (P120), peso à desmama (PD), peso ao ano (PES12), ganho de peso pós desmama, de 205 aos 550 dias (GP345), ganho de peso na prova à pasto da ABCZ, em 224 dias (GP224), perímetro escrotal (PE), temperamento (TEMP), e repelência (REP) e indicam que a variabilidade genética aditiva existente é suficiente para a obtenção do ganho genético em resposta à seleção desde que sejam realizados ajustes, tanto nas estratégias de seleção adotadas para a obtenção de maiores ganhos nos valores genéticos, como também nos fatores ambientais que possam possibilitar ao máximo, a expressão do potencial genético dos animais. / The present study had as objective to evaluate the population structure, to estimate parameters (coefficients of heritability and correlation) and to determine the phenotypic and genetic trends for growth and adaptability traits in Nellore cattle, Lemgruber line. The database used in the analysis consisted of 39,290 animals in the pedigree and 24,353 animals in the production file. The population parameters were obtained from the software POPREP (Groeneveld et al., 2009) and ENDOG v 3.2 (Gutierrez and GOYACHE, 2005). The descriptive statistics and genetic parameters for each characteristic studied were estimated by four seven-traits analysis using the program VCE-6 (Kovac & GROENEVELD, 2003) which uses the animal model. The phenotypic and genetic trends were obtained by means of phenotypic and genetic values respectively on the year of birth of the animals and the regression coefficients were estimated by the method of least squares. Although the average inbreeding of the herd being considered moderate, there was high percentage of inbred individuals and small effective population size. Furthermore, the continuous increase in inbreeding over the years demonstrates the need for intervention in the selection of individuals for reproduction, so that future problems can be avoided. Direct heritability coefficients were estimated as 0.24, 0.31, 0.31, 0.21, 0.19, 0.30, 0.41, 0.19 and 0.17 respectively for birth weight (PN), weight 120 days of age (P120), weaning weight (PD), weight at 12 months of age (PES12), weight gain after weaning from 205 to 550 days (GP345), weight gain during the pasture test of ABCZ in 224 days (GP224), scrotal circumference (PE), docility (TEMP) and repellency (REP) and indicate that the additive genetic variability is sufficient to obtain genetic gain in response to selection as far as adjustments in selection strategies are adopted to achieve larger gains in breeding values, and environmental factors that may allow the expression of the genetic potential of the animals.

Individuals vary from each other in their genetic content. Genetic diversity is at the core of the evolutionary theory. Rooted in a solid theoretical framework developed as early as the 1930s, current empirical observations of genomic diversity became possible due to technological advances. These measurements, originally based on a few gene sequences from several individuals, are becoming possible at the genome scale for entire populations. We can now explore how evolutionary forces shape diversity levels along different parts of the genome. In this thesis, I focus on the variation in levels of diversity within genomes using avian systems and in particular that of the collared flycatcher (Ficedula albicollis). First, I describe the variation in genetic diversity along the genome of the collared flycatcher and compare it to the amount of variation in diversity across individuals within the population. I provide guidelines on how a small number of makers can capture the extent of variability in a population. Second, I investigate the stability of the local levels of diversity in the genome across evolutionary time scales by comparing collared flycatcher to the hooded crow (Corvus (corone) corone). Third, I study how selection can maintain variation through pervasive evolutionary conflict between sexes. Lastly, I explore how shifts in genome-wide variant frequencies across few generations can be utilised to estimate the effective size of population.

No description available.

The study's purpose was to examine large and small high schools in Virginia to try to understand if the high school student population size influenced the student achievement of eleventh grade students based on identified predictor variables. Several studies were identified and included in the literature review. From the literature review, the predictor variables of socioeconomic status, student attendance, minority status, and teacher quality were identified to aid in the development of the main research question and five guiding questions. The main research question investigated if there was a relationship between a high school student population size and student achievement when statistically controlling for selected predictor variables. From the literature review, the main research question, five guiding questions, and a methodology were developed that would best aid in the analysis of the data. Data were collected from the Virginia Department of Education for the 2012-2013 school year that consisted of eleventh grade Virginia Standards of Learning assessments, socioeconomic status, student attendance, minority population, and teacher quality. Hierarchical multiple regression was the statistical method used to analyze the data for the research questions. The results of the study indicate there is a relationship between socioeconomic status and student achievement. However, when student population size was introduced, the result was not significant. The overall conclusion regarding socioeconomic status and student achievement is that the issue is not rooted in the size of a high school population. When student attendance was accounted for, a relationship existed between high school student population size and student achievement. When student attendance was accounted for, an indication existed that the high schools in the study with both large and small student populations had a higher percentage of student achievement when students attended on a regular basis. When the size of a high school student population, whether it was large or small, was taken into account, student achievement declined if a high school had a large percentage of minority students. Teacher quality was found to have a relationship with student achievement when high school student population size was taken into account. Overall, results of the study indicate that there was a relationship between a high school student population size and student achievement when statistically controlling for isolated variables. / Ed. D.

2023 / Accurately estimating hidden population sizes is essential for effective policy-making, but a traditional census is typically not feasible. Data-driven approaches that use existing sources are needed for reliable prevalence estimates. Capture-recapture methods, used in ecology to estimate population size, have been advanced in epidemiology over the past two decades to improve disease prevalence estimates and can relax unrealistic assumptions of naive models. Yet given the present development within epidemiology, difficulties still exist in using conventional capture-recapture methods to estimate prevalence in subpopulations across spatial units. Additionally, there is a need to estimate prevalence in socioeconomically stratified groups to understand the groups with higher risks and discover potential health disparities. Unfortunately, conventional approaches heavily rely on stand-alone stratified analysis, which may be less effective when certain subgroups display similar or more intricate patterns of correlated healthcare engagement. To address these challenges, we first articulated the fundamental concepts behind the capture-recapture method by comparing it to a similar approach, the multiplier benchmark method. Then we focused on the capture-recapture structure and proposed a Bayesian hierarchical spatial capture-recapture model that estimates individual detection probabilities and spatial variation of OUD prevalence. The proposed model enables population structure estimation from coarse summaries to finer-scale components using a spatially explicit areal adjacency-based smoothing process model. Finally, an extension of the proposed model is presented to incorporate the correlation structure between socioeconomically stratified subpopulations. We applied the extended model to the Massachusetts Public Health Data Warehouse to evaluate the efficiency of the proposed method compared to traditional methods. We used simulation studies for each work to investigate the performance of the proposed estimators in varying circumstances and to determine which method may be more effective in different scenarios. Our comprehensive evaluation found that the proposed methods could accurately estimate area-specific and group-specific prevalence with lower bias and variance. These methods effectively address the issue of data sparsity in subpopulations and account for the underlying structure that more accurately reflects what occurs during ecological and data collection processes. The methods developed in this dissertation provide a powerful tool for accurately estimating the disease burden in hidden subpopulations, making them essential for targeted interventions and effective public health policies. / 2027-02-04T00:00:00Z

From an ecological perspective, knowledge of demographic history is highly valuable because population size fluctuations can be matched to known climatic events, thereby revealing great insight into a species’ reaction to past climate change. This in turn enables us to predict how they might respond to future climate scenarios. Prominently, with the advent of high-throughput sequencing it is now becoming possible to assemble genomes of non-model organisms thereby providing unprecedented resolution to the study of demographic history and speciation. This thesis utilises four species of grouse (Aves, subfamily Tetraoninae) in order to explore the demographic history and speciation within this lineage; the willow grouse, red grouse, rock ptarmigan and the black grouse. I, and my co-authors, begin by reviewing the plethora of methods used to estimate contemporary effective population size (Ne) and demographic history that are available to animal conservation practitioners. We find that their underlying assumptions and necessary input data can bias in their application, and thus we provide a summary of their applicability. I then use the whole genomes of the black grouse, willow grouse and rock ptarmigan to infer their population dynamics within the last million years. I find three dominant periods that shape their demographic history: early Pleistocene cooling (3-0.9 Mya), the mid-Brunhes event (430 kya) and the last glacial period (110-10 kya). I also find strong signals of local population history – recolonization and subdivision events – affecting their demography. In the subsequent study, I explore the grouse dynamics within the last glacial period in more detail by including more distant samples and using ecological modelling to track habitat distribution changes. I further uncover strong signals of local population history, with multiple fringe populations undergoing severe bottlenecks. I also determine that future climate change is expected to drastically constrict the distribution of the studied grouse. Lastly, I use whole genome sequencing to uncover 6 highly differentiated regions, containing 7 genes, hinting at their role in adaptation and speciation in three grouse taxa. I also locate a region of low differentiation, containing the Agouti pigmentation gene, indicating its role in the grouse plumage coloration.