Possible? Sure. Probable? No. A wise choice based on what was known at the time? No. Desired by public K-12 school districts in Iowa during the COVID-19 pandemic of 2020? Mostly no. But let us fill in some details.
The Topeka shiner (Notropis topeka), a federally endangered species of minnow endemic to the Great Plains region of the central United States, has experienced widespread population declines resulting from loss of habitat. N. topeka habitat in Iowa, most notably oxbow wetlands, was mostly eliminated from the landscape during European settlement and agriculturalization of the region. Over the last two decades, restoration of oxbow habitats in Iowa has been increasing. Restorations provide critical habitat for N. topeka and regenerate a variety of ecosystem services that benefit many species of flora and fauna. There are signs that restoration of oxbow ecosystems is generating positive impacts on N. topeka recovery. Recent studies revealed that N. topeka populations are recovering within a few Iowa watersheds. In the investigation described here, we report the 2020 discovery of two N. topeka specimens in different restored oxbows within the White Fox Creek HUC10 of north central Iowa. Prior to these collections, the species had been undetected within this basin for 36 years. (It is possible that N. topeka persisted within the basin but remained undetected during sampling efforts.) Multiple oxbows have been restored within the White Fox Creek basin in recent years, and significant source populations of N. topeka can be found in nearby watersheds. These collections suggest that as oxbow restorations continue and land stewardship practices improve, N. topeka populations might recover and become reestablished within the historical range.
Commercially available running shoes differ in terms of their relative masses. It is unclear how well consumers may be able to judge mass differences from wearing alone, though previous studies suggest that perceptual outcomes may be influenced by experimental design factors such as the length of time worn. The purpose of this study was to investigate how the number of shoes used in a testing session impacts wearers' mass perceptual accuracy. Forty-eight young adult males ran for 5 min in 4 pairs of shoes (their own running shoes plus 3 unfamiliar pairs) before being asked whether an unfamiliar running shoe was heavier or lighter than their own, and to indicate perceptions of shoe heaviness (mass), comfort, stability, and temperature using visual analogue scales (VAS). A subset (n=18) was also asked to provide global rank orderings after wearing all 4 pairs of shoes. Participants were 67% accurate in the heavier/lighter task and 64% accurate in the global rank order task. Global rank order scores and VAS heaviness marks were significantly and positively correlated. Mass accuracy scores (n=48) were then compared to a previous study (n=25) performed by the same investigators using the same methods but with 6 pairs of shoes instead of 4. No difference in accuracy scores for either the heavier/lighter comparisons or global rank order scores between the study populations was found, suggesting that the number of test shoes may not influence mass perception accuracy.
We analyzed soil-magnetic properties and macroscopic charcoal abundances for two soil profiles located in Hitchcock Nature Center (HNC), Honey Creek, Iowa. Both profiles are located on valley bottoms in the Loess Hills of western Iowa and developed in redeposited Peoria loess. Site HNC 15D is located on an elevated stream terrace and contains a moderately well-developed modern soil. Site HNC 15G is located on a valley floor and consists of a poorly developed modern soil and a series of buried soil horizons. Both sites record consistently low charcoal concentrations of 0.5 mm2/g in prehistoric deposits. While site HNC 15D remains undated, age control at site HNC 15G is provided through four radiocarbon dates from charcoal and snail shell fragments. At site HNC 15G, late 19th century deposits are characterized by a marked increase in charcoal abundance to 3 mm2/g and charcoal abundances return to near prehistoric levels in recent sediment. We observe a similar increase in charcoal abundances below the modern soil at HNC 15D and an accumulation of charcoal at the surface of the profile. Soil-magnetic properties show moderate increases in magnetic susceptibility and ARM/IRM ratios when compared to loessic parent material and confirm moderate to weak soil development. High values for χARM/χFD (40-100) and χARM/χ (2-5) further suggest that regional fires have not been intense enough to significantly heat the topsoil horizons and allow for the formation of strongly magnetic secondary iron-oxide minerals.
Based on results of a 2018 Iowa Science Teacher Section survey, the Iowa Science Foundation of the Iowa Academy of Science funded a professional development opportunity focused on engineering design (ISF 19–01). A free one–day workshop was created for school districts in Iowa, and the first was held in fall of 2019. During this workshop, teachers learned more about engineering design, experienced engineering design activities from kindergarten through high school levels, and brainstormed facets of engineering design. The day ended with guiding teachers in writing their own engineering design activities. The workshop was successful and well–received according to a post–workshop survey using a five–point rating scale. Comments included “I have a better understanding of how to use engineering design in my classroom” (4.56/5.00), “I was able to make good progress in developing an engineering design activity” (4.67/5.00), and “I would recommend this workshop to friends and colleagues” (4.78/5.00. Participating teachers learned skills that will impact more than 1,100 students, and additional workshops continue to be scheduled.
A series of urban stream and snowmelt samples collected 2017-2018 provide a localized understanding of seasonal chloride concentrations in urban streams and establishes baseline knowledge of conditions in Cedar Rapids and Coralville, Iowa. Results indicate both variability in chloride concentrations based on location as well as conditions under which water was sampled.
Foraging rates (arthropod consumption [g/min/chick]) of human-imprinted chicks provide a reasonable metric for assessing the quality of brood-rearing habitats for gallinaceous species. Arthropod foraging rates have been estimated using dry mass or allometric equations of crop and gizzard contents, and internal surgical ligature of the crop. Current methods are time- and labor-intensive. We describe a new method to estimate foraging rate using chick mass change (g/min) during a 30-min foraging trial.Our technique requires surgical tissue adhesive be applied to the cloaca to prevent bias in mass change measurements caused by defecation. We compare our mass change technique to a published internal surgical ligature technique using human-imprinted ring-necked pheasant chicks. Chicks treated with tissue adhesive had rates of mass gain (0.012 g/min, SE = 0.004) similar to ligatured chicks (0.006 g/min, SE = 0.004, F1,58 = 3.16, P = 0.0805). In contrast to the surgical ligature procedure, we found tissue adhesives can be applied quickly in the field and provide an efficient means to evaluate foraging quality of brood-rearing habitats. We provide suggestions for a set of standardized protocols for the use of imprinted chicks.
In response to ongoing hypoxia in the Gulf of Mexico, several states in the Mississippi River basin have adopted nutrient reduction plans in recent years designed to arrest the flow of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) from both point and non-point sources to the stream network. Iowa's Nutrient Reduction Strategy, implemented in 2012, aims to reduce stream loading of these nutrients by 45% within a yet-to-be-defined time frame. Because the state has chosen to integrate accountability into the strategy through the numerical objective, ongoing water monitoring is necessary to credibly measure progress. The primary objective of this research was to use water quality monitoring and discharge data to update statewide nitrate-nitrogen (NO3-N) loading using the combined data sets generated by in situ water quality sensors and traditional grab sample monitoring conducted by state government. Our research shows that the 5-year running annual average of nitrate-nitrogen loading continues to increase, and after the 2018 water year is 73% higher than that calculated in 2003. Loads from Iowa areas draining to the Missouri River are increasing more rapidly than loads from areas draining to the upper Mississippi River: 132% versus 55% since 2003. This shows that best management practices designed to stem the loss of nutrients from the corn-soybean system must be widely adopted and robustly designed for extreme environmental conditions if Iowa is to meet its water quality objectives.
We present spectroscopy that confirms periodic Doppler-shifts along with photometry that reinforces a lack of eclipsing in the double-lined spectroscopic binary 57 Cygni. Our spectroscopy concentrates on a range encompassing H-alpha and the helium 667.8 nm line, where we find Doppler-shifts of both stars resolved in the helium line but less so in the broader H-alpha profile. Although we find the radial velocities derived from both lines reasonably consistent, we retained only the helium-line derived velocities for sinusoidal curve-fits to the orbital dependence. The fit-amplitudes specify the ratio of the stellar masses as 1.03 ± 0.05, in agreement with previous assessments. We find an eccentricity of 0.028 ± 0.024 and a longitude of periastron of 163.5 ± 2.5°. The former is significantly lower than that previously reported, while the latter is in agreement but calls into question the apsidal motion predicted four decades ago. Our modeling suggests the presence of an external third body implicit in this previous apsidal motion, as well as the dominant mechanism for our reported change in eccentricity. Based upon the spectral type assignment, the near-circular orbit, and the well-established mass ratio, we can place restrictions on the orbital inclination from 51.5-to-53.0°, in reasonable agreement with previous estimates.
Forested seep wetlands dominated by skunk cabbage (Symplocarpus foetidus) occur frequently in the Canoe Creek watershed of the Upper Iowa River, but this type of wetland has not been described systematically in the upper Midwest. The goal of this study is to document the herbaceous plant flora of five seeps. Although individual seeps are small (200-500 m2), they provide habitat for a high number of plant species. Five seeps with total area less than 0.2 ha supported more than 120 native vascular herbaceous taxa, 20 of which have a coefficient of conservatism (C-value) of 7 or higher and 23 that are obligate wetland species. Several species that were common in these habitats 100 years ago appear to have been locally extirpated or have become uncommon in the region, including Gentianopsis crinita, Cirsium muticum, Eupatorium altissimum, Chelone glabra, and Micranthes pensylvanica. Today, these plant communities are threatened by invasive plant species, high levels of deer herbivory, and destruction by human activities. We hope that by documenting their current species composition we can inspire protection of these wetlands and provide a baseline for monitoring future changes.
Gauge-based and multi-sensor precipitation estimation (MPE) data are compared on hourly, daily, monthly and event time scales at site locations over a 12-year period. Gauge data is collected at 16 sites within a 950 km2 portion of the Upper Iowa River in northeast Iowa. Average relative MPE bias is positive for all but the event time scale, and has a magnitude of less than 0.10 for all scales. Gauge and MPE average correlation coefficients range from 0.73 on the hourly scale to 0.92 on the event and monthly scales. The MPE relative bias standard deviation decreases from 1.70 mm on the hourly scale to 0.27 mm on the monthly scale. Decomposition of hourly bias reveals that the false positive portion is the most significant component. Seventy percent of MPE accumulation have a relative bias of 0.5 or less when hourly accumulations are 7 mm or greater. Pearson product-moment coefficient analysis reveals strong similarities in spatial correlations as a function of site separation. Rainfall time series for the basin are constructed from the two data sources and used as input to a Blocked Topmodel rainfall runoff scheme to provide another means of comparison on a basin-wide spatial scale. Five goodness-of-fit measures are used for quantifying the viability of simulated flows. No statistically significant difference in annual means using the difference sources is found for any of the measures.
The parasite assemblage infecting yellow bass (Morone mississippiensis) inhabiting their native range was compared to the assemblage infecting an introduced population. The gills and alimentary canal of 47 yellow bass collected from the Mississippi River (native) and 41 yellow bass collected from Otter Creek Lake in Tama County, Iowa, (introduced) were examined for metazoan parasites. Species richness was higher in the sample from the native population compared to the introduced sample (8 versus 3, respectively). Yellow bass from the introduced sample hosted species that were generalist fish parasites, and these infections were at low intensities. On the other hand, yellow bass from the native sample were infected with high numbers of Allacanthochasmus varius and Neochasmus umbellus, which have been reported from a smaller number of fish hosts, and in the case of A. varius, primarily in genus Morone.
Isolated in scattered remnants, less than 0.1% of Iowa's original tallgrass prairie remains. The small populations remaining are at risk for reduced genetic diversity, inbreeding depression, and outbreeding depression. In light of these concerns, we used microsatellite analysis to assess the genetic structure of butterfly milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa) populations on prairie remnants in northwest Iowa. We compared remnant populations with a restoration population at Dordt College in Sioux Center, Iowa, and with an Oklahoma seed source. Microsatellites identified for use in common milkweed (Asclepias syriaca) had sufficient polymorphism information content (PIC) across the butterfly milkweed (A. tuberosa) populations sampled (mean PIC = 0.624). The FIS values indicated a lack of inbreeding (mean FIS = −0.1455) even in the commercially expanded seed. The pairwise FST values showed a low degree of differentiation among the remnants (mean FST = 0.0453) but a moderate degree (mean FST = 0.105) of differentiation when comparing the remnants to the Dordt restoration or to seed from Oklahoma. Despite massive loss and fragmentation of the tallgrass prairie, our microsatellite analysis revealed no evidence of inbreeding in A. tuberosa. However, evidence of genetic differentiation suggests that effort should be made to preserve the diversity still present. Seed expansion efforts appear to have had minimal impact on overall genetic diversity, although the diversity in particular selectable traits may be reduced. The differences between the genetics of the propagated seed at the Dordt restoration and the Oklahoma seed when compared to native remnants support the usefulness of source-identified seed.
Listeria monocytogenes is a foodborne human pathogen responsible for listerosis. The genomes of several L. monocytogenes strains have been recently sequenced. The genome of L. monocytogenes 08-5578, which was in part responsible for a significant listerosis outbreak in 2008, contains an unexpectedly high percentage of protein-encoding genes (1,927 out of 3,161; 60.96%) autonomously annotated as hypothetical proteins. The aim of this study was to test whether a manual annotation strategy could be used to assign more meaningful functional names to the hypothetical proteins of 08-5578. A holistic, manual gene annotation strategy that utilized sequence homology, cellular localization predictions, structure-based evidence, phylogeny, and protein-protein interaction data was used to assign potential cellular roles to 79 out of 100 hypothetical proteins randomly selected from the genome of 08-5578. Of significance, 5 of the 79 hypothetical proteins assigned a more meaningful name may contribute to the virulence of L. monocytogenes 08-5578, by contributing to chemotaxis, cell surface protein sorting, cell wall biosynthesis, and cold adaptation. The findings here support the notion that manual annotations, using a combination of diverse bioinformatics tools, can improve the quality of genomic information provided by automated genome annotation methods alone.
Our differential photometry of the eclipsing binary 68 Herculis through V- and R-filters shows periodic minima consistent with a previously established period. As a function of its orbital motion, we report spectra over a limited wavelength range encompassing H-alpha 656.3 nm and helium 667.8 nm lines. Doppler shifts of both stars were resolved in H-alpha, while only the more massive star rendered the helium line with Doppler shifts that agree with the radial velocity we derive for it from the H-alpha profile. Sinusoidal curve-fits to the orbital dependence of the radial velocities imply circular orbits for both components, with amplitudes indicating a mass ratio for the two stars in agreement with published values. A subtle Doppler shift associated with stellar rotation is evident in the radial velocity of the primary component as its eclipse commences; modeling indicates this rotation is synchronous with the orbital revolution, an expected tidal effect of near-contact binary systems.
Although more than 85% of Iowa (USA) was covered by tallgrass prairie at the time of settlement by Europeans in the early 19th century, less than 0.1% remains. The Richard W. Pohl State Preserve at Ames (IA) High School, surrounded on three sides by structures, roads, and other development, protects 4 ha of tallgrass prairie. The preserve, commonly referred to as Ames High Prairie (AHP), was grazed but never plowed under private ownership until its acquisition by the Ames School District in 1959. Although considered for development as a parking lot or football field in the 1960s, the residents of Ames voted in 1970 to award The Nature Conservancy (TNC) a 49-year lease to the property (until 2019). This preserve, almost completely open in the 1930s, has been subject to numerous threats, including encroachment by woody plants, entry of non-native and invasive plant species associated with human activity, and erosion associated with storm water runoff, sewer line repair, foot and bike traffic, and major flood events. Recent management activities at AHP, conducted by volunteer land stewards, high school and college students, TNC summer interns, and private contractors, has consisted of controlled burns, cutting and herbicide treatment of encroaching woody plants, manual removal and herbicide treatment of invasive herbaceous plants, and sowing of seeds (collected on site) into reopened areas. Three vascular plant inventories of the 8.9 ha preserve (1966, 1995, current study) have documented the occurrence of 465 taxa (329 native) at AHP, including 5 Iowa special concern species. This flora includes 147 native prairie plant taxa, which ranks 8th in comparison with the 26 other (and mostly larger) prairies protected as state preserves in Iowa. As a vegetation remnant, AHP protects tallgrass prairie taxa and their gene pools, maintains an example of historically abundant (but now scarce) tallgrass prairie vegetation, and provides citizens an opportunity to experience prairie.
The insulin/insulin-like signaling (IIS) pathway is an evolutionary conserved molecular signaling pathway that regulates growth, reproduction, stress resistance, and longevity in response to nutrition and external stress. While the constituents of this pathway and their functions are relatively well understood in laboratory model animals, they have not been explored in many other organisms, with notable exceptions in the fisheries literature. We tested for the gene expression of four key components of this pathway in the garter snake (Thamnophis elegans) liver, and determine how the transcription of these components responds to heat stress. We found that the two insulin-like growth factor ligands (IGF-1 and IGF-2) and the receptors (IGF-1 Receptor and M6P/IGF-2 Receptor, or IGF-1R and IGF-2R) are expressed in garter snake liver tissue. Under normal laboratory conditions, IGF-2 and IGF-2R are expressed at a higher level than IGF-1 and IGF-1R. In response to heat stress, IGF-1 expression remained the same, IGF-2 expression decreased, and the expression of both receptors increased. These results demonstrate that elements of the IIS pathway are responsive to heat stress in snakes. Further studies are needed to fully understand the biological consequences of this response.
Reexamination of 34-yr-old microscope slides of palynological preparations reveals the loss and degradation of algal palynomorphs, in particular the green alga Pediastrum and the desmid Pleurotaenium. Results from this study suggest that great caution should be used when referring to archived palynological slides.
A new record of a native vascular plant, Lactuca hirsuta Muhlenberg ex Nuttall var. sanguinea (Bigelow) Fernald, is reported for Iowa. A specimen was collected in 1983 by the author during a study of the Swaledale railroad prairie in Cerro Gordo County, north central Iowa (Eddy 1988). The plant was inexplicably excluded in the species catalogue when a Swaledale railroad flora was published in 1988; thus, this “new” Iowa record in 2013 was collected 30 years prior. The voucher specimen was “re-discovered” by Dr. Neil A. Harriman at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh (OSH), and its identification verified.
Clay Prairie State Preserve (1.2 ha) is an upland prairie located in Butler County, IA, and represents one of the last remnants of black-soil tallgrass prairie in northeast Iowa. An annotated checklist of the vascular flora of Clay Prairie is presented here, based on a previously published flora of the preserve and recent field work conducted by the authors between 1997 to 2001, and 2008 to 2011. The preserve contains a diverse vascular flora representing 50 families, 145 genera and 214 taxa (174 native to Iowa). In comparison with 26 larger prairies (4 to 121 ha) protected in the Iowa state preserves system, the Clay Prairie flora ranks 10th in total number of native Iowa prairie plant taxa (135 taxa) and 10th in total number of native Iowa prairie plant taxa assigned high (7 to 10) values of the Iowa Conservation Coefficient (55 taxa). As a remnant of formerly much more extensive tallgrass prairie in Iowa, Clay Prairie protects individual plant taxa, plant assemblages, and ecological and evolutionary processes, while providing opportunities for people to experience native prairie. The floristic comparisons presented in this paper suggest that the floras of many other prairies protected in the Iowa State Preserves system are not thoroughly documented. Hence, we recommend that floristic studies of these other prairie preserves be undertaken to include documentation of the entire flora by voucher specimens. We also encourage site managers of prairies in the Iowa State Preserves system to prepare annual reports summarizing management and educational activities that occur in these preserves.
