What is the genetic relatedness between and among populations of turkey vultures? By determining genetic relatedness, foraging and roosting behaviors of vultures may be better understood. Also as a result of this research, a system of determining genetic relationship will be developed ultimately allowing evolutionary behaviors of vulture populations including altruism and/or group selection to possibly be uncovered. The purpose of this research was to obtain sequence information in order to design species-specific primers for future comparisons of minisatellite variation among and between populations of turkey vultures. Two different methods for DNA isolation from blood were compared for their ability to produce high quantities of amplifiable DNA. The Rapid Method (Lahiri et al., 1993) yielded 5.6 ug of DNA from 500 ul ofblood with a purity ratio [A260/A2S0] of 0.926, while the protocol using IsocodeTM Stixyielded 4.3 ug DNA from 15 ul of blood and had a higher purity ratio of 1.365. Although both methods yielded amplifiable DNA, better amplification was attained using the IsocodeTM Stix, which was used for the rest of the project. The polymerase chain reaction, using RAPD (Random Amplified Polymorphic DNA) primers (Operon Technologies, Alameda, CA), was performed to obtain DNA regions containing minisatellites. Fragments generated by the OPB 08 primer hybridized to a pool of labeled minisatellite core sequences by Southern hybridization. This minisatellitecontaining fragment (800 bp) was excised from a gel and cloned into a plasmid vector (pCR®2.1-TOPO) producing a recombinant plasmid. The recombinant plasmids werereplicated in E. coli, plasmid DNA was isolated, and the cloned fragment was sequenced for determination of the flanking sequences around the minisatellite core. Multiple colonies (pTpvul 1-4) were picked from the cloning/transformation stages but only one brightly hybridizing colony was chosen for sequencing (pTpvul 1). Sequencing and sequencing analysis proved difficult and no minisatellite core sequences could be located. This could be attributed to extensive secondary structure in the DNA sequence or to recombination within the fragment when grown in E. coli. These flanking sequences, thought to be identical at each locus of the minisatellite in a genome, were to be used as species-specific primers in future minisatelhte-PCR DNA fingerprinting. / Department of Biology

There is no abstract available for this thesis. / Department of Biology

Turkey vultures were observed foraging alone and in groups of up to 16 individuals. Vigilance behavior was quantified by monitoring 4 aspects of vulture foraging behavior (proportion ofhead up time, number of head raises per minute, time interval between head raises, and proportion of time spent foraging during foraging bouts). Although solitary foragers spent 91% of their foraging bouts actively foraging, a greater proportion (47%)of their foraging time was spent with their heads up compared to individuals occurring in groups (<29%). Similarly, individuals in small groups (2-3 and 5-7) were more vigilant than individuals in large groups (8-16). Solitary foraging vultures raised their heads at a significantly higher rate than those foraging in groups of 5-7 or 8-16 and had significantly shorter intervals between head raises than group foragers. Large group foragers were able to minimize their vulnerability to predation because at least one head was up during the entire foraging bout. Results of this study were consistent with the 'many-eyes, hypothesis that individuals in a foraging group can feed at a faster rate by reducing vigilance time as the number of individuals scanning for predators increases (Pulliam, H. R. 1973. J. Theor. Biol. 38: 419-422).Key Words: turkey vulture, vulture, vigilance, foraging behavior, group size, Indiana. / Department of Biology

Dermatological remedies make up at least one-third of the traditional pharmacopoeia in southern Italy. The identification of folk remedies for the skin is important both for the preservation of traditional medical knowledge and in the search for novel antimicrobial agents in the treatment of skin and soft tissue infection (SSTI). Our goal is to document traditional remedies from botanical, animal, mineral and industrial sources for the topical treatment of skin ailments. In addition to SSTI remedies for humans, we also discuss certain ethnoveterinary applications. Field research was conducted in ten communities in the Vulture-Alto Bradano area of the Basilicata province, southern Italy. We randomly sampled 112 interviewees, stratified by age and gender. After obtaining prior informed consent, we collected data through semi-structured interviews, participant-observation, and small focus groups techniques. Voucher specimens of all cited botanic species were deposited at FTG and HLUC herbaria located in the US and Italy. We report the preparation and topical application of 116 remedies derived from 38 plant species. Remedies are used to treat laceration, burn wound, wart, inflammation, rash, dental abscess, furuncle, dermatitis, and other conditions. The pharmacopoeia also includes 49 animal remedies derived from sources such as pigs, slugs, and humans. Ethnoveterinary medicine, which incorporates both animal and plant derived remedies, is addressed. We also examine the recent decline in knowledge regarding the dermatological pharmacopoeia. The traditional dermatological pharmacopoeia of Vulture-Alto Bradano is based on a dynamic folk medical construct of natural and spiritual illness and healing. Remedies are used to treat more than 45 skin and soft tissue conditions of both humans and animals. Of the total 165 remedies reported, 110 have never before been published in the mainland southern Italian ethnomedical literature.

No description available.

Tez (Yüksek Lisans) - Süleyman Demirel Üniversitesi, Fen Bilimleri Enstitüsü, Biyoloji Anabilim Dalı, 2008. / Kaynakça var.

The Bearded Vulture, Gypaetus barbatus, was previously distributed across southern and western South Africa, as far south as Cape Town. Today, the entire population in southern Africa is restricted to the Lesotho highlands and the Drakensberg escarpment and nearby mountains in South Africa, where the population continues to decline. Research has shown that territorial abandonment is apparently associated with the density of human settlements within 10km of a territory. This pattern was assumed to be linked to the increased risk of unnatural mortalities in areas with higher human presence. However, habitat use and habitat selection, especially whether the species actively avoids human settlements has not yet been explored and could contribute to this pattern. In this study, we used data from nine adult Bearded Vultures fitted with Global Positioning System (GPS) satellite tags to determine which habitat is being selected. We modelled habitat selection in relation to various topographic and habitat variables, including information on built-up areas (i.e., areas with a high density of buildings). We predicted that birds would select areas of grassland and avoid areas with high building density and adjoining areas. We found that Bearded Vultures selected areas closer to their nest sites and supplementary feeding sites, with steeper slopes, and highly rugged terrain. In terms of habitat, they selected areas with grassland and avoided areas with forest, while cropland was neither selected nor avoided. As predicted Bearded Vultures avoided built-up areas and their vicinity. These results suggest that the Bearded Vulture may be sensitive to the negative impacts of a changing landscape in its distribution range. These results can help conservation managers in guiding development (e.g., human settlement expansion and afforestation) and protecting priority habitats (e.g., grassland) within the breeding range of adult Bearded Vultures.

The aim of this study was to determine the habitat features affecting nest site selection and breeding success of the endangered Egyptian Vultures (Neophron percnopterus) breeding around the town of Beypazari. We searched and monitored nest sites in the study area (750 km2) for the years 2010 and 2011. The differences in terms of habitat features between nest sites and random points distributed along cliffs, and between successful and failed nest sites were investigated using both parametric approaches and machine learning methods with 21 habitat variables. The size of the Beypazari population of Egyptian Vultures was estimated to be 45 pairs. Seventeen nests in 2010 and 37 nests in 2011 were found and monitored. The breeding success of the population was estimated to be 100% in 2010 and 70% in 2011. Random Forests was the modeling technique with the highest accuracy and the modeling process chose 6 and 4 variables affecting nest site selection and breeding success of the species, respectively. Results showed that human impact was a potential factor governing the distribution of nest sites in the area and increased the probability of breeding failure as vultures clearly preferred to nest away from nearby villages, towns and roads, and nests on lower cliffs and nests that are close to the dump site (therefore the town center) was prone to failure. Utilization of elevation gradient and aspect showed trends similar to other populations of the species, with probability of nesting increasing at lower altitudes and for south facing cliffs. The overall results emphasize the potential conflict between human presence and the population of Egyptian Vultures in the area. Continuous monitoring of the nest sites and conservation activities towards raising public awareness are advised.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2007. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file (viewed on October 9, 2007) Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Submitted by Erika Demachki (erikademachki@gmail.com) on 2015-01-16T17:13:14Z No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 23148 bytes, checksum: 9da0b6dfac957114c6a7714714b86306 (MD5) Tese - Hilari Wanderley Hidasi - 2014.pdf: 1654829 bytes, checksum: b50671bb3feb0625688191733ad9b696 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Erika Demachki (erikademachki@gmail.com) on 2015-01-16T17:37:45Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 23148 bytes, checksum: 9da0b6dfac957114c6a7714714b86306 (MD5) Tese - Hilari Wanderley Hidasi - 2014.pdf: 1654829 bytes, checksum: b50671bb3feb0625688191733ad9b696 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2015-01-16T17:37:45Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 2 license_rdf: 23148 bytes, checksum: 9da0b6dfac957114c6a7714714b86306 (MD5) Tese - Hilari Wanderley Hidasi - 2014.pdf: 1654829 bytes, checksum: b50671bb3feb0625688191733ad9b696 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2013-04-12 / Aves sinantrópicas aproximam-se de atividades humanas em busca de abrigo, água e alimento, podendo percorrer grandes distâncias para tanto. Em busca de informações acerca da importância dessas aves na transmissão de agentes patogênicos de importância na avicultura comercial, foi realizado estudo com 260 aves de comportamento sinantrópico, sendo 200 pombos comuns (Columba livia) e 60 urubus de cabeça preta (Coragyps atratus), na região metropolitana de Goiânia - Goiás. Foram colhidas amostras de fezes, soro e suabes traqueais que foram submetidos a testes para detecção de Salmonella sp. por bacteriologia convencional e Reação em Cadeia da Polimerase em Tempo Real (rPCR), Mycoplasma galisepticum e M. synoviae pela Soroaglutinação Rápida em Placa (SAR) e rPCR, além de isolamento de Escherichia coli pela bacteriologia convencional com detecção de genes de virulência de E. coli patogênica para aves (APEC) pela PCR e perfil de suscetibilidade a antimicrobianos dos isolados. Os resultados observados, na pesquisa de Salmonella sp. das amostras de pombos, 13% (26/200) foram positivas no exame bacteriológico e 27% (54/200) das amostras positivas no rPCR. Do total de 60 amostras obtidas dos urubus, nenhuma amostra foi positiva no bacteriológico convencional e 8,3% (5/60) foram positivas no rPCR. Para a pesquisa de Mycoplasma, das amostras colhidas dos pombos, 7,5% (15/200) amostras foram reativas no teste sorológico, sendo 4,5% (9/200) positivas para M. galliisepticum e 3% (6/200) para M. synoviae. Já no rPCR, 2,5% (5/200) foram positivas para M. gallisepticum. Das amostras colhidas dos urubus, nenhuma foi positiva nos dois testes aos quais foram submetidas. Foi isolado E. coli das excretas e detectado pela PCR os genes de virulência papC, tsh, iuc e iss, com resultado para amostras de pombos de 11,23%(20/178) para iuc, 2,24% (4/178) papC, 11,79% (21/179) tsh e 6, 17% (11/178). Para urubus 8,16% (4/49) iuc, 14,28% (7/49) tsh, 6,12% (3/49) iss, e nenhuma positiva para papC. Adicionalmente, os isolados de E. coli foram submetidos a teste de perfil de resistência à antibióticos em que se obteve: sulfametazina122/178 (68,53%), ampicilina 130/178 (73,03%), ciprofloxacina 40/178 (22,47%), apramicina 57/178 (32,02%), sulfametropin 110/178 (61,79%), enrofloxacina 71/178 (39,88%), tetraciclina 119/178 (66,85%), sulfonamida 123/172 (69,10%), neomicina 59/178 (33,14%), doxaciclina 67/178 (37,64%), oxitetraciclina 51/178(28,65%), gentamicina 42/178 (23,59%), ceftiofur 79/178 (44,38%), amoxicilina + ac. clavulânico 92/178 (51,68%) de resistência nas amostras isoladas de pombos, e em amostras isoladas de urubus: sulfametazina 36/49 (73,46%), ampicilina 39/49 (79,59%), ciprofloxacina 12/49 (24,48%), apramicina 9/49(18,36%), sulfametropin 30/49 (61,22%), enrofloxacina 7/49 (14,28%), tetraciclina 27/49 (55,10%), sulfonamida 32/49 (65,30%), neomicina 12/49 (24,48%), doxaciclina 11/49 (22,44%), neomicina 9/49 (18,36%), oxitetraciclina 11/49 (22,44%), gentamicina 10/49 (20,40%), ceftiofur 12/49 (24,48%), associação de amoxicilina e ácido clavulânico 31/49 (63,26%) de resistência. Os resultados sugerem que essas aves de comportamento sinantrópico, são potenciais veiculadores de agentes causadores de perdas na produção avícola e preocupantes para a saúde pública. Além disso, podem constituir em suporte de transferência de fenótipos de E.coli resistentes. / Aves sinantrópicas aproximam-se de atividades humanas em busca de abrigo, água e alimento, podendo percorrer grandes distâncias para tanto. Em busca de informações acerca da importância dessas aves na transmissão de agentes patogênicos de importância na avicultura comercial, foi realizado estudo com 260 aves de comportamento sinantrópico, sendo 200 pombos comuns (Columba livia) e 60 urubus de cabeça preta (Coragyps atratus), na região metropolitana de Goiânia - Goiás. Foram colhidas amostras de fezes, soro e suabes traqueais que foram submetidos a testes para detecção de Salmonella sp. por bacteriologia convencional e Reação em Cadeia da Polimerase em Tempo Real (rPCR), Mycoplasma galisepticum e M. synoviae pela Soroaglutinação Rápida em Placa (SAR) e rPCR, além de isolamento de Escherichia coli pela bacteriologia convencional com detecção de genes de virulência de E. coli patogênica para aves (APEC) pela PCR e perfil de suscetibilidade a antimicrobianos dos isolados. Os resultados observados, na pesquisa de Salmonella sp. das amostras de pombos, 13% (26/200) foram positivas no exame bacteriológico e 27% (54/200) das amostras positivas no rPCR. Do total de 60 amostras obtidas dos urubus, nenhuma amostra foi positiva no bacteriológico convencional e 8,3% (5/60) foram positivas no rPCR. Para a pesquisa de Mycoplasma, das amostras colhidas dos pombos, 7,5% (15/200) amostras foram reativas no teste sorológico, sendo 4,5% (9/200) positivas para M. galliisepticum e 3% (6/200) para M. synoviae. Já no rPCR, 2,5% (5/200) foram positivas para M. gallisepticum. Das amostras colhidas dos urubus, nenhuma foi positiva nos dois testes aos quais foram submetidas. Foi isolado E. coli das excretas e detectado pela PCR os genes de virulência papC, tsh, iuc e iss, com resultado para amostras de pombos de 11,23%(20/178) para iuc, 2,24% (4/178) papC, 11,79% (21/179) tsh e 6, 17% (11/178). Para urubus 8,16% (4/49) iuc, 14,28% (7/49) tsh, 6,12% (3/49) iss, e nenhuma positiva para papC. Adicionalmente, os isolados de E. coli foram submetidos a teste de perfil de resistência à antibióticos em que se obteve: sulfametazina122/178 (68,53%), ampicilina 130/178 (73,03%), ciprofloxacina 40/178 (22,47%), apramicina 57/178 (32,02%), sulfametropin 110/178 (61,79%), enrofloxacina 71/178 (39,88%), tetraciclina 119/178 (66,85%), sulfonamida 123/172 (69,10%), neomicina 59/178 (33,14%), doxaciclina 67/178 (37,64%), oxitetraciclina 51/178(28,65%), gentamicina 42/178 (23,59%), ceftiofur 79/178 (44,38%), amoxicilina + ac. clavulânico 92/178 (51,68%) de resistência nas amostras isoladas de pombos, e em amostras isoladas de urubus: sulfametazina 36/49 (73,46%), ampicilina 39/49 (79,59%), ciprofloxacina 12/49 (24,48%), apramicina 9/49(18,36%), sulfametropin 30/49 (61,22%), enrofloxacina 7/49 (14,28%), tetraciclina 27/49 (55,10%), sulfonamida 32/49 (65,30%), neomicina 12/49 (24,48%), doxaciclina 11/49 (22,44%), neomicina 9/49 (18,36%), oxitetraciclina 11/49 (22,44%), gentamicina 10/49 (20,40%), ceftiofur 12/49 (24,48%), associação de amoxicilina e ácido clavulânico 31/49 (63,26%) de resistência. Os resultados sugerem que essas aves de comportamento sinantrópico, são potenciais veiculadores de agentes causadores de perdas na produção avícola e preocupantes para a saúde pública. Além disso, podem constituir em suporte de transferência de fenótipos de E.coli resistentes.