I used microsatellite markers to assess reproductive isolation between cryptic, sympatric lineages of a freshwater catfish (Pimelodella chagresi ). These are "cryptic" lineages because they cannot be distinguished visually on the basis of morphological characters, and currently they are recognized as a single species. Previous analyses utilizing mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) indicated that two highly divergent lineages are present in lower Central America, and that these lineages are the result of independent colonization events from South American source populations. I isolated eight dinucleotide repeats from P. chagresi and designed primers to amplify these microsatellite loci. I sampled fishes from four Panamanian watersheds. The congruence of microsatellite data with mtDNA indicated that these taxa are reproductively isolated and should be considered as separate species despite the lack of morphological differentiation. Both lineages exhibit a high degree of divergence among populations inhabiting isolated freshwater drainages, but the lineages differ in their intra-watershed population structure.

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Great importance is currently being given to any type of ecosystem; the tropical forest is one of them and it is our case. Also, in the same way, importance is given to ecosystems inhabitants, which in one or another manner depend of the ecosystems and for many years have demonstrated a harmonious relation with their environment. / In consequence, this thesis in its first chapter describes relevant issues of human communities that have lived for many years in the tropical forest located in the Darien province in the Republic of Panama. These communities are of the Embera and Wounaan indigenous groups. In particular, I present their point of view and the negative experiences that these groups have found with the scientific research which, in fact, has been conducted within their territories and that they have also been the object of for many years. Due to these conditions, the Embera and Wounaan state the wed to establish new policies to initiate a method of mutual understanding with an individuals and organized groups interested in conducting work in their territory. One of the proposals is to acknowledge participation and the right to understand and explain what is planned to be conducted as a research and to return obtained results by means of a well structured document.

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Ecological research aimed at the conservation of useful plants has rarely considered the spatial distribution of resources nor the potential implications for management. In this thesis I examined the spatial patterning of a group of 23 useful plant species on the 3,500 ha territory of a Kuna community in Darien, Panama. A systematic random sampling scheme was used to survey the distribution and abundance of the species, as well as the physical environment. A series of canonical analyses was conducted to evaluate the species-environment relationships and to identify spatial structures in the species distributions left unexplained by the environmental variables. Four distinct distribution patterns were identified among the species; these were most strongly explained by land-use, the degree of canopy closure and topography. Significant spatial structures, independent of the environmental variables, were related to anthropogenic pressures and an edaphic gradient. The habitat associations of the individual species are described and data on one species, Sabal mauritiiformis , is used to illustrate the utility of these data in the management of plant resources on human landscapes.

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Call number: LD2668 .T4 1928 F31

The main aim of this thesis was to investigate the occurrence of dolphins in Pacific waters adjacent to the Panama Canal in the context of biological, temporal and spatial factors. Acoustic data were collected at 101 sites at a range of distances and depths from the shipping region. Data were collected between March 2010 and April 2011 in a diurnal cycle over a total of 114 recording days. Received sound levels were split into 1/3 Octave bandwidths to study variation in sound pressure levels and then converted to spectrum density levels to show the sound components of the background noise in this region. Generalised Linear Models were used to relate dolphin whistle detections to temporal, spatial, environmental and acoustic variables. The major sources of background noise were biological noise from soniferous fish and snapping shrimp and anthropogenic noise from vessels characterised by mid to high frequencies produced by artisanal fishing boats. There was monthly and diurnal variation with some locations characterised by loud sounds in the mid to high frequencies at night. Whistle characteristics analysis revealed that the frequencies and range of the whistles were different to those previously reported under similar conditions. Whistles varied diurnally and in the presence of fish chorus and fishing boats. The study highlights a strong correlation between fish choruses and whistle detection. Temporal and spatial models showed that whistle detections varied monthly and in relation to fish noise and small vessel engine noise. Dolphins were distributed throughout most of the study area; however, whistle detections varied with distance from the coast. The results provide new knowledge about background noise composition in this region and provide the first information on the ecology of dolphin whistles in relation to this background noise, especially to fish chorus.

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