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Circadian Rhythms are the outputs of an internal biological clock common to all animals. Most circadian rhythms have about a 24-hour period and can synchronize with the earth’s solar day. Our lab primarily studies the circadian rhythms of spiders because their internal clocks can be extremely different from 24 hours (some as much as five hours different), yet they can remain synchronized with the solar day. The objective of this study is to identify a non-spider species for comparison with spiders that, a) has a clear and measurable circadian rhythm, and b) can easily be bred and reared in the lab. Gromphadorhina Grandidieri, also known as Black Tiger Hissing Cockroach (hereafter referred to as ‘hissers’), is one of the very many species of African Hissing Cockroaches native to rainforests in Madagascar. These species get the nickname ‘hisser’ because of their defense mechanism that forces air through spiracles which are breathing holes in the exoskeleton to make a hissing noise like a cat would. These animals are colonial and are easily bred and reared in captivity. Our hypotheses were that G. Grandidieri will be nocturnally active with a typical animal circadian rhythm of close to 24 hours. To carry out this experiment we measured locomotor activity in Juvenile and adult hissers for 5 days in a 12:12 hour light:dark cycle followed by 7-10 days in constant darkness to reveal the animals’ internal clock period. We measured this using an activity monitor which records when an individual moves across an infrared light beam. Data were taken from 32 individuals in this manner. Our results showed that juveniles had a mean circadian rhythm of 24.03 + 0.49 hours, and that adults had a mean rhythm of 24.12 + 0.90 hours. Most, but not all, individuals had a clear and measurable circadian rhythm and survived the duration of the experiment. Locomotor activity in the light:dark cycle was mainly in the dark phase, confirming that these animals are generally nocturnal. Overall, our hypotheses were supported and we have identified an excellent comparison species for future research in our lab.

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No description available.

Spiders weave intricate webs for catching prey, providing shelter and setting mating rituals; arguably the most notable of these creations is the orb web. In this thesis we model the essential vibrations of orb webs by first considering a spider web as a multilinked structure of elastic strings. We then solve the associated eigenvalue problem using a Chebyshev pseudospectral collocation method to discretize the system. This thesis first examines the vibrations of webs with uniform material properties throughout, then investigates the effects of using biologically realistic material parameters for silks within a single web. Understanding how spiders detect and react to the vibrations produced by their webs is of interest for both biological and engineering applications. / Master of Science

Gorse, Ulex europaeus, is a serious weed of agriculture and forestry in New Zealand. The mite Tetranychus lintearius feeds on gorse in Europe and was released in New Zealand during autumn 1989 as a potential biological control agent. The aim of my laboratory study was to increase available knowledge on its development and aggregation. As the quality of gorse declined as a food resource (as indicated by chlorophyll content) a significant decline in egg production, and an increase in development time of mites was found. Mean egg production at 15℃ ranged from 37.8 to 45.2 eggs/female over 10 days in the experimental treatments and development time from 39.2 to 43.3 days. Density of adult female mites (1, 2, 5, 10, 15, 20/spine) also had a significant effect on the number of eggs produced/female over ten days (mean daily egg production/female, 0.78-0.88). Mean development time from egg to adult decreased from 40.6 to 39 days as density increased from 1 to 50 mites/spine. The resident New Zealand strain of T lintearius, imported originally from Cornwall, is now widely established but has not established successfully on the west coast of the South Island or in the north of the North Island. Four new strains recently introduced from coastal Portugal and Spain, areas climatically similar to these New Zealand regions, may be more successful. Thus, although egg production and survival of all strains were significantly reduced when subjected to daily periods of simulated rainfall in laboratory experiments, those of the newly introduced strains were least affected. Laboratory experiments with the resident New Zealand and Cambados strains also showed that individuals aggregated actively at 10-20℃, but the latter aggregated more strongly at these temperatures. This strong aggregation behaviour may increase survival in warm, wet climates and suggests that Cambados strain mites could become established and so increase gorse control in Westland and Northland.

The aim of this thesis was to provide a better understanding of the needs of spider monkeys (genus: Ateles) kept in zoological parks in order to provide an appropriate environment, which enhances the physical and emotional wellbeing of the individuals. This series of studies adopted primarily a physiological approach that entailed measuring cortisol in urine samples collected over a seven year period to assess the impact of a variety of social and environmental conditions. My studies also involved behavioural observations and a questionnaire study to collect information from other zoological parks that maintain groups of spider monkeys. In order to address the aims of my research I first validated an enzyme immunoassay for urinary cortisol which allowed for the activity of the HPA axis to be measured to assess the physiological stress responses in spider monkeys. The first study assessed the impact of visitors on spider monkeys by comparing levels of urinary cortisol collected with visitor numbers and I found an increase in visitor numbers was associated with an increase in cortisol. This was the first time the physiological impact of visitors was investigated and supports behavioural researcher that visitors adversely impact on primates in zoos. The second study I carried out involved a questionnaires to investigate frequency, direction and intensity of aggression in zoo-housed spider monkeys in 55 other zoos around the world. The pattern of aggressions reported indicated severe and lethal aggression was relatively frequent among captive spider monkeys. Adult males were the most frequent actors of aggression and sub adult males were the most frequent targets, contradicting reports from wild spider monkeys. This aggression could be a condition of the management of spider monkeys in the zoos whereby males and normally transferred between zoos contradicting reports from the wild spider monkeys in which females would emigrate on reaching maturity. Next I investigated aggression, reproductive and separation stressors in the spider monkeys housed at Chester Zoo over a seven year period and measured their effects via changes in urinary cortisol prior to, at and following each event. Aggression had the largest effect, with targets and bystanders having the highest levels of cortisol on the day of aggression for severe and lethal aggression, respectively. When examining the reproductive events, cortisol levels were significantly elevated in the mother the week prior to and the day or birth, but were highest for bystander females on the day of birth. In the case of separations, cortisol was elevated when an individual was separated for longer than 24 hours for separations and less than 24 hours for reintroductions. Finally I investigated the replacement of the breeding male in the spider monkeys at Chester Zoo. Although a significant behavioural effect was identified in the adult females, there was little evidence of an increase in urinary cortisol among them. In addition, there were no instances of aggression between the adult males and the juvenile male in the group. Overall conclusions from this study indicate that the group of spider monkeys did demonstrate a varying stress response to a variety of social and environmental stressors associated with elevated cortisol levels and behavioural changes. However, there was no evidence of long term chronic stressors which are normally associated with poor welfare. This indicated that the environmental provided for this particular group of zoo-housed spider monkeys generally allowed for the individuals within the group to cope and adapt. In light these findings the study also makes a number of recommendations regarding the enclosure design, relocated of individuals and the gradual introduction of spider monkeys in zoos. The findings of this study are important as it contributes to our understanding of the physiological responses to stressors in a zoo environment and therefore has implications for animal management. It also identifies potential species specific requirements for the spider monkey that should be considered.

Anyphaenidae apresenta 56 gêneros e 525 espécies e compreende aranhas com pequeno a médio porte, que habitam diversos ambientes. Anyphaenidae foi dividida em Amauroboidinae e Anyphaeninae sendo esta última caracterizada pelas quelíceras com mais de quatro dentículos na retromargem, espiráculo traqueal aproximadamente no meio do ventre ou entre o meio do ventre e o sulco epigástrico. Atualmente Anyphaeninae compreende 33 gêneros e 346 espécies na região Neotropical, dentro as quais se destaca o grupo Aysha, sendo o mais diversificado com 10 gêneros. Estes gêneros são caracterizados por possuir como característica diagnóstica importante, o processo embólico no palpo dos machos. O gênero Tafana Simon é diagnosticado por apresentar distinta projeção na base do êmbolo e processo tegular ventral distal próximo a apófise média no palpo dos machos e margem anterior esclerotizada e septo atrial no epígino das fêmeas. O presente trabalho teve por objetivo revisar e analisar filogeneticamente o gênero Tafana e ver as relações de parentesco com as espécies do grupo Aysha. As análises cladística foram realizadas a partir de uma matriz com 21 terminais e 71 caracteres provenientes de estudo morfológico comparado. Utilizamos como critério de optimilidade a parcimônia. A obtenção de inferências filogenéticas resultou em duas árvores mais parcimoniosas, apresentando 147 passos (IC= 53; IR=62). De acordo com a árvore de consenso o gênero Tafana é monofilético apresentando alça mediana do ducto espermático na região distal do tégulo, projeção na base do êmbolo laminar ou cônica e borda lateral sinuosa. Sendo assim o gênero Tafana pertence ao grupo Aysha, por apresentar processo embólico no palpo dos machos. Além disso o gênero Tafana Simon foi revisado e redescrito machos e fêmeas de Tafana quelchii, T. silhavyi e T. straminea. Descrevemos onze espécies novas. Nove espécies mantem sua distribuição para o norte da América do Sul, no Equador, Venezuela, Colômbia, Peru e Bolívia, e duas espécies, Tafana sp. nov. 6 e Tafana sp. nov. 7 com distribuição para o norte da Argentina / Anyphaenidae includes 56 genera and 525 species and comprises small to medium sized spiders that inhabit different environments. Anyphaenidae is divided into Amauroboidinae and Anyphaeninae, the latter characterized by chelicerae with more than four denticles in the retromargin, tracheal spiracle approximately in the middle of the abdomen or near the epigastric furrow. Currently Anyphaeninae comprises 33 genera and 346 species in the Neotropical region, in which the Aysha group stands out as the most diverse with 10 genera. These genera are characterized by having an important diagnostic characteristic, the embolic process in the male palpi. The genus Tafana Simon is recognized by a distinct projection at the base of the embolus, a distal ventral tegular process near the median apophysis in the male palpi and an anterior sclerotized margin and atrial septum in female epigina. The present work had as objective to review and analyze phylogenetically the genus Tafana and to see the relations of kinship with the species of the Aysha group. The cladistic analyzes were performed from a matrix with 21 terminals and 71 characters from a comparative morphological study. We use parsimony as the criterion of optimality. Obtaining phylogenetic inferences resulted in two most parsimonious trees, with 147 steps (CI = 53; RI = 62). According to the consensus tree, the genus Tafana is monophyletic presenting a median loop of the spermatic duct in the distal region of the tegulum, projection at the base of the embolus laminar or conical and the sinuous lateral border. Thus, the genus Tafana belongs to the Aysha group, because it presents an embolic process in the male palpi. In addition the genus Tafana Simon was reviewed and redescribed males and females of Tafana quelchii, T. silhavyi and T. straminea. We describe eleven new species. Nine species maintain their distribution to the north of South America, in Ecuador, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru and Bolivia, and two species, Tafana sp. nov. 6 and Tafana sp. nov. 7 with distribution to the north of Argentina

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Spider mites (Acari: Tetranychidae) are an important agricultural pest of many crops and landscape plants. They can reproduce rapidly and quickly develop resistance to many pesticides, making them difficult to manage. Plant water-stress and high temperatures promote spider mite infestations, while spider mite outbreaks can also result from neonicotinoid insecticide applications. Drought is predicted to increase in the Intermountain West due to increases in temperature and reduced frequency of precipitation events in the region, and neonicotinoids are currently one of the most widely used classes of insecticides in field crops. I studied the interactive effect of these two simultaneously occurring abiotic factors on spider mite outbreaks and plant biosynthesis of herbivore-related defense proteins. I also evaluated ways to alleviate spider mite outbreaks with drought-tolerant corn and the exogenous application of plant phytohormones involved in plant resistance toward biotic stressors. I found that plant water-stress increased spider mites and that neonicotinoids exacerbated the effect of water-stress. Although applications of plant hormones did not reduce the effect of water-stress and neonicotinoids, drought tolerant corn showed promise in reducing the effect of water-stress and spider mite outbreaks.