Download or read book Analysis of Changes in Burrow Density and Hatching Success of the Gopher Tortoise Gopherus Polyphemus in the De Soto National Forest Mississippi written by Shea Lyle Hammond and published by . This book was released on 2009 with total page 114 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Gopher Tortoise Gopherus Polyphemus Recovery Plan written by Wendell A. Neal and published by . This book was released on 1990 with total page 46 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Maternal Effects and Offspring Behavior written by Aaron Lee Holbrook and published by . This book was released on 2015 with total page 86 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Federally threatened in Mississippi, gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) populations within the state have strongly variable recruitment and are generally in decline. Hatching success is significantly lower in Mississippi than in any other part of the species' range, and most hatchlings die within the first year. There are few refuges where survival and hatching success is high. Here I compare two populations that differ in recruitment and offspring survival for differences in corticosterone. Corticosterone is a hormone that influences energy availability and is released in elevated levels during stressful events, like living in poor quality habitat. Prolonged corticosterone elevation can impede growth and immune responses and result in early death. To assess adult stress, I utilized leukocyte profiles as they are influenced by prolonged elevation of corticosterone. A viable yolk sampling technique was used to collect yolk samples to determine levels of yolk CORT. Hatchlings were then kept in captivity for two years to observe growth rates and burrowing behavior before being released and monitored via radiotelemetry to monitor dispersal and survival. I found no differences in adult stress or egg yolk CORT between populations. This suggests adults are not excessively stressed. Survival of hatchlings did not differ between sites. Captive-reared hatchlings were larger and may have better survival than similar aged wild hatchlings. Overall, the poor survival of gopher tortoises may be more strongly linked to environmental variables such as soil structure than physiological ones. --Page ii.
Download or read book Gopher Tortoise Habitat Management Strategies and Options written by Gopher Tortoise Council. Meeting and published by . This book was released on 1988 with total page 78 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book A Comparison of Gopher Tortoise Gopherus Polyphemus Burrow Densities in Two Areas of Savannas Preserve State Park written by Amanda Althouse and published by . This book was released on 2005 with total page 50 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Lack of Plasticity in Gopher Tortoise Gopherus Polyphemus Nesting Behavior and Fecundity in a Translocated Population written by Jennifer N. DeSha and published by . This book was released on 2021 with total page 65 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Author's abstract: Gopher tortoises (Gopherus polyphemus) are a threatened, keystone species that play important roles in upland habitats throughout the southeastern United States. Climate change could have diverse and strong effects on the fecundity and population demographics of gopher tortoises, as they are long-lived reptiles that rely on environmental temperatures for thermoregulation and sex determination. I used a population of translocated gopher tortoises at Nokuse Plantation, located in the panhandle of Florida, as a common garden experiment to assess whether plasticity of several nesting behaviors (i.e., nest temperature, depth, and orientation) and components of fecundity (i.e., clutch size, egg size, hatching success) might compensate for changes in environmental conditions. I compared nest characteristics among translocated females (from across the state of Florida) and examined how multiple measures of environmental distance, such as difference in warm season temperature between the translocation and origin sites, impacted aspects of fecundity. I found that tortoises did not exhibit plasticity and did not adjust their nesting behaviors in response to novel conditions. Tortoises that originated from climates that were more dissimilar from that of the translocation site placed their nests at different locations within the burrow apron, under differing amounts of canopy cover, and at different depths. Environmental distance of translocation also impacted hatching success, although there was no direct impact of nest site selection on hatching success, suggesting that differences in hatching success due to female origin are more a consequence of physiology (e.g., developmental processes) than female behavior. Although there was a high degree of variability in the direction of the effect of environmental distance – i.e., whether tortoises from more or less similar climates had greater hatching success – these results may indicate a strong degree of local adaptation that is still apparent even several years after translocation. These findings suggest that gopher tortoises may not be resilient to impending environmental changes, and behavior plasticity should not be expected. Effects on nest site selection, incubation temperatures, and hatching success suggest that translocation guidelines should consider climate differences when selecting relocation sites.
Download or read book Environmental Effects on Gopher Tortoise Gopherus Polyphemus Burrows written by Ron Christian Sambeli and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page 34 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: The gopher tortoise (Gopherus polyphemus) is a keystone species that provides a habitat for hundreds of other animal species. While environmental temperatures may fluctuate, gopher tortoise burrows maintain a fairly constant temperature. This study examines data collected from 50 burrows found in Abacoa Jupiter Greenway range VIa. Variables considered when analyzing the data include weather conditions, burrow location, and whether the temperature was measured from the air, the burrow's apron, or from within the burrow. The results were compared to previous research conducted on gopher tortoises.
Download or read book The Effects of Nest Predation on Hatching Success in Gopher Tortoises Gopherus Polyphemus Daudin 1802 written by John E. Marshall and published by . This book was released on 1987 with total page 134 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Habitat Assessment for Gopher Tortoise Gopherus Polyphemus and Grassland Birds in South Mississippi written by Nathan Andrew Stukey and published by . This book was released on 2017 with total page 309 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: I studied eight habitat types of south Mississippi from 2009-2010 to examine habitat conditions and faunal communities associated with the presence of gopher tortoise burrows (Gopherus polyphemus). Field methods included burrow surveys, vegetation sampling, mound counts, and point count surveys. Active tortoise burrow presence was influenced by percent coverage of bare ground, native legumes, grass-like plants, basal area, overstory canopy, and woody plants. Fire ant mound densities were influenced by percent coverage of overstory canopy cover, bare ground, grass-like vegetation, and woody plants. Northern bobwhite (Colinus virginianus) and Bachman’s sparrow (Peucaea aestivalis) were detected more frequently in longleaf pine (Pinus palustris) dominated habitats supporting gopher tortoises. My findings will be used to address the paucity of information related to gopher tortoise conservation on private and public lands and identify potential areas for inclusion in conservation initiatives supporting longleaf pine restoration or gopher tortoise conservation in the southeastern lower coastal plain.
Download or read book Honors Thesis a Study of the Correlation Between Burrow Size and Degree of Concealment for the Gopher Tortoise Gopherus Polyphemus written by Jennifer Wynn Brown and published by . This book was released on 1995 with total page 52 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Modeling Burrow Choice in Gopherus Polyphemus written by Christopher Olbrych and published by . This book was released on 2016 with total page 28 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: Gopher tortoise populations, declining due to habitat fragmentation and degradation, are in need of revised management practices that take into account the individual site’s needs and limitations. The site of concern in this research is the Greenway in Jupiter, FL, which is suffering habitat degradation due to overgrowth driven by a lack of controlled burns or alternative management methods on site. A simple econometric model is developed characterizing the effects of environmental factors that influence the occupancy of burrows by gopher tortoises. A greater understanding of environmental factors affecting gopher tortoise habitat will allow land management practices to best meet the needs of this keystone species at the Greenway nature area.
Download or read book Burrow Collapse as a Potential Stressor on the Gopher Tortoise Gopherus Polyphemus written by Mary Mendonca and published by . This book was released on 2007 with total page 55 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Effects of Burrow Collapse on the Gopher Tortoise Gopherus Polyphemus written by Richard L. Beauman and published by . This book was released on 2008 with total page 59 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Effects of Stand Thinning on Gopher Tortoises Gopherus Polyphemus Testudines Testudinidae in the Conecuh National Forest written by Marilyn Davis Herrington and published by . This book was released on 1996 with total page 94 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Demography and Reproductive Biology of the Gopher Tortoise Gopherus Polyphemus in Mississippi written by Kelley Renee Smith and published by . This book was released on 1996 with total page 106 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book Tortoise Densities and Burrow Occupancy Rates for Gopher Tortoises on Selected Sites in Mississippi written by Thomas M. Mann and published by . This book was released on 1993 with total page 48 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
Download or read book The Conservation Biology of Tortoises written by IUCN/SSC Tortoise and Freshwater Turtle Specialist Group and published by IUCN. This book was released on 1989 with total page 210 pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt:
