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I tested the hypothesis that in mature colonies of the seed harvester Pogonomyrmex californicus ant species, paired pleometrotic queens would produce workers more efficiently after a massive removal of their work force than haplometrotic queens, paired pleometrotic with haplometrotic queens, and single pleometrotic queens. I suggested that the paired pleometrotic queens would have an advantage of cooperating together in reproducing more workers quicker than the other conditions to make up for the lost workers. This would demonstrate a benefit that pleometrosis has over haplometrosis for mature colonies, which would explain why pleometrosis continues for P.californicus after colony foundation. After removing all but twenty workers for every colony, I took pictures and counted the emerging brood for 52 days. Analyses showed that the paired pleometrotic queens and the haplometrotic queens both grew at an equally efficient rate and the paired pleometrotic and haplometrotic queens growing the least efficiently. However, the results were not significant and did not support the hypothesis that paired pleometrotic queens recover from worker loss more proficiently than other social systems.
ContributorsFernandez, Marisa Raquel (Author) / Fewell, Jennifer (Thesis director) / Gadau, Juergen (Committee member) / Haney, Brian (Committee member) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / Department of Psychology (Contributor)
Created2014-05
Description
Exclusivity and duration of breastfeeding and the provision of human milk in the United States is suboptimal. In the absence of adequate banked donor human milk for distribution to all infants in need, many families choose to engage in the practice of Private Arrangement Milk Sharing (PAMS), partially facilitated through social media, to procure human milk for their infants. Evidence regarding the participant and infant characteristics and risk abatement practices is incomplete. This dissertation describes and explores the characteristics of recipient participants and infants, family constellation, donor screening practices, and related risk abatement strategies. Data was collected via on-line survey as a sub-group of a larger data set including donor participants and international participants. Binary logistic regression modeling of factors that contribute to consistent screening and risk abatement practices and important antecedents to engaging in PAMS was conducted. Results are contextualized within a tailored socioecological framework of factors affecting infant feeding practices. Tailoring was accomplished via qualitative descriptive analysis of participant responses applied to an existing breastfeeding framework. Participants in this sample were predominantly white, married, with a mean age of 32.9 years, with at least some college education and above median income. Risk abatement and screening practices were influenced by support of a healthcare provider during decision-making, college education, infant age and health status, having lactation support, birth type and birth attendant, and the duration and sources sought for learning about milk sharing.
ContributorsBond, Angela Bowen (Author) / Reifsnider, Elizabeth G. (Thesis advisor) / Keller, Colleen (Committee member) / Todd, Michael (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2016
Description
This project aims to better understand aggression in a cooperative social system, specifically within the ant species Pogonomyrmex Californicus. The queens of some populations of these ants form cooperative associations of unrelated queens during nest foundation, while others prefer to form solitary nests and may show aggression towards unwanted nest mates. Because it is difficult to collect large amounts of data from a wild population and laboratory environments cannot capture the scale of nature, we created a computer simulation based on data collected in the lab and the field that emulates the life cycle of this species of ants. By manipulating behavioral and environmental conditions and observing the results we were able to better understand the advantages and disadvantages of showing aggression in this cooperative social system.
ContributorsScolaro, Jared Anthony (Author) / Kostelich, Eric (Thesis director) / Fewell, Jennifer (Committee member) / School of International Letters and Cultures (Contributor) / W. P. Carey School of Business (Contributor) / School of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2016-05