Presentation on a study conducted in Arcata, CA on the prevalence of an understudied virus in terrestrial isopods: Iridovirus. This study aimed to detect if there are associations among soil moisture level, density of potential isopod hosts, and/or temperature with the prevalence of Iridovirus. Across 7 study sites, a significant association was detected between soil moisture level and prevalence of Iridovirus, and density of potential isopod hosts and prevalence of Iridovirus.

The study is aimed to determine (1) If mesocarnivores use temporal niche partitioning to reduce resource conflict, then interspecific species will have minimal activity overlap and (2) If anthropogenic presence alters temporal niche partitioning among mesocarnivores at my study site, then mesocarnivores will display circadian overlap where it typically does not occur.

Climate change is one of worlds greatest threat to ecosystems and biodiversity. Rising temperatures could have increased impact on migratory waterfowl during spring migration periods. I went out a did point counts at three different locations (Arcata Marsh, Hookton Slough, Salmon Creek), measured temperature and other environmental factors and waterfowl abundance. There was no significant impact by temperature on waterfowl abundance. Further Research could be done over a longer period of time to measure the impacts climate change and rising temperatures could have on migration timing during the spring.

This study seeks to examine the relationship between coyote behavior and proximity to areas of public lands where hunting frequently takes place and cosmopolitan areas where coyotes are generally free from being huntedover time using California Department of Fish and Wildlife Wildlife Incident Report data. Insights gained are intended to inform targeted management strategies, aiding in conservation and coexistence efforts between humans and coyotes. The significance of this research lies in its contribution to addressing the pressing challenges of human-wildlife conflict, a pervasive issue with far-reaching implications.

This research project was a the capstone project for my Wildife degree, in which I researched the impact short-wave UV light reflection by flowers affects pollinator behavior. Insects can see into the ultraviolet light spectrum, and plants are known to reflect these light wavelengths for aiding pollinators. I studied the correlation between pollinator visitation frequency and the proportion of flower surface area that is reflective of UV light. I focused on 3 main pollinator groups: bumble bees, native bees and flower flies. I found that pollinators are significantly more likley to visit flowers with high UV light reflection than flowers with low amounts of UV light reflection.

Echolocation has evolved in several mammals, including shrews. In bats, echolocation may occur through the larynx via the stylohyoid-tympanic articulation (ST-A). Using CT scans, we studied the morphology of the inner ear to determine if the ST-A is present in echolocating shrews. Of the nine sampled genera, three have behavioral data suggesting echolocation. Six species presented ST-A, including four species not known to echolocate. Given the limited behavioral data and the small data set, a few interpretations are possible, all of which highlight the need for additional research in this understudied mammalian group in order to reveal the role of the ST-A in shrew echolocation.

Echolocation has evolved in several mammals, including shrews. In bats, echolocation may occur through the larynx via the stylohyoid-tympanic articulation (ST-A). Using CT scans, we studied the morphology of the inner ear to determine if the ST-A is present in echolocating shrews. Of the nine sampled genera, three have behavioral data suggesting echolocation. Six species presented ST-A, including four species not known to echolocate. Given the limited behavioral data and the small data set, a few interpretations are possible, all of which highlight the need for additional research in this understudied mammalian group in order to reveal the role of the ST-A in shrew echolocation.

Attempts to unify the Standard Model and General Relativity often include features that violate the Weak Equivalence Principle (WEP) and/or the gravitational Inverse-Square Law (ISL). To investigate this, researchers at Cal Poly Humboldt are conducting precision measurements of gravitational interactions below 50 microns. This project employs a torsion pendulum configured as a composition dipole with equal masses of titanium and aluminum. The twist angle and frequency of the pendulum is measured as an attractor mass in a parallel-plate configuration oscillates within submillimeter separations. *Supported by NSF grants PHY-1065697, PHY-1306783, PHY-1606988, PHY-1908502

We collected microhabitat data at nest trees to determine if Red-tailed Hawks and Swainson's Hawks showed a preference for certain tree characteristics. Microhabitat data included tree height, nest height, number of primary trunks, diameter at breast height, density of canopy, the presence or absence of lichen, lichen type, and local tree density. We used logistic regression to test the expectation that Red-tailed Hawks and Swainson's Hawks select older and larger trees relative to local availability. The implications of these results could inform which trees are selected for western juniper removal, which is an anticipated treatment conducted by the U.S. Forest Service in Butte Valley.

A study looking at how bees perceive danger, and if it affects their foraging behaviors. This was determined by the use of simulated dangers, in this case artificial black capped chickadees. These dangers were placed in bushes and the number of bumblebees that visited each bush (either with or without dangers) was counted. The research finds that the presence of danger is significant to bees when choosing which flowers or bushes to forage.