West-central Illinois Research Articles

The Role of Temperature, Wind Speed, and Precipitation on the Abundance of Culex Species and West Nile Virus Infection Rate in Rural West-Central Illinois.

While most research on West Nile virus (WNV) and its main vector, the Culex mosquito, has been conducted in laboratory or urban settings, studies with field-caught mosquitoes in rural areas, such as west-central Illinois, are lacking. The objective of this research was to investigate key abiotic factors using macroclimate data, including temperature, precipitation, and wind speed, to determine their influence on field-caught mosquito abundance in 4 rural counties in Illinois from 2014 to 2016. Additionally, the relationship between minimum infection rate (MIR) and thermal time was examined. Using gravid traps at 15 sites, Culex mosquitoes were collected twice a week. A total of 5,255 adult female Culex mosquitoes (Cx. pipiens, Cx. quinquefasciatus, and Cx. restuans) were collected in 2014; 9,138 in 2015; and 5,702 in 2016. Regression models were developed based on outcomes of relationships between field-caught mosquitoes and abiotic factors. Precipitation and thermal time had the most significant relationship with mosquito abundance (r2 = 0.993 and r2 = 0.993, respectively), while wind speed was less (r2 = 0.714). The greatest number of Culex and the highest annual MIR were observed in 2015, which was also the driest of the 3 sampling seasons. Mosquito abundance was observed to increase with warmer degree days and MIR was found to increase with abundance in mosquitoes. These models can be used for other mosquito surveillance and monitoring studies in various climate types and environments.

Home range, site fidelity, and movements of timber rattlesnakes (Crotalus horridus) in west-central Illinois

Understanding the home range of imperiled reptiles is important to the design of conservation and recovery efforts. Despite numerous home range studies for the Threatened timber rattlesnake (Crotalus horridus), many have limited sample sizes or outdated analytical methods and only a single study has been undertaken in the central midwestern United States. We report on the home range size, site fidelity, and movements of C. horridus in west-central Illinois. Using VHF telemetry, we located 29 C. horridus (13 female, 16 male) over a 5-year period for a total of 51 annual records of the species' locations and movements. We calculated annual home ranges for each snake per year using 99%, 95%, and 50% isopleths derived from Brownian Bridge utilization distributions (BBMM), and we also report 100% minimum convex polygons to be consistent with older studies. We examined the effects of sex, mass, SVL, and year on home range sizes and reported on movement metrics as well as home range fidelity using both Utilization Distribution Overlap Index (UDOI) and Bhattacharyya's affinity (BA) statistics. The home range sizes for male and non-gravid C. horridus were 88.72 Ha (CI 63.41–110.03) and 28.06 Ha (CI 17.17–38.96) for 99% BBMM; 55.65 Ha (CI 39.36–71.93) and 17.98 (CI 10.69–25.28) for 95% BBMM; 7.36 Ha (CI 5.08–9.64) and 2.06 Ha (CI 1.26–2.87) for 50% BBMM; and 78.54Ha (CI 47.78–109.30) and 27.96 Ha (CI 7.41–48.51) for MCP. The estimated daily distance traveled was significantly greater for males (mean = 57.25 m/day, CI 49.06–65.43) than females (mean = 27.55 m/day, CI 18.99–36.12), particularly during the summer mating season. Similarly, maximum displacement distances (i.e., maximum straight-line distance) from hibernacula were significantly greater for males (mean = 2.03 km, CI 1.57–2.48) than females (mean = 1.29 km, CI 0.85–1.73], and on average, males were located further from their hibernacula throughout the entirety of their active season. We calculated fidelity to high-use areas using 11 snakes that were tracked over multiple years. The mean BBMM overlap using Bhattacharyya's affinity (BA) for all snakes at the 99%, 95%, and 50% isopleths was 0.48 (CI 0.40–0.57), 0.40 (0.32–0.49), and 0.07 (0.05–0.10), respectively. The mean BBMM overlap for all snakes using the Utilization Distribution Overlap Index (UDOI) at the 99%, 95%, and 50% isopleths was 0.64 (CI 0.49–0.77), 0.32 (CI 0.21–0.47), and 0.02 (CI 0.01–0.05)), respectively. Our results are largely consistent with those of other studies in terms of the influence of sex on home range size and movements. The species also exhibits strong site fidelity with snakes generally using the same areas each summer, though there is far less overlap in specific (e.g., 50% UDOI) high-use areas, suggesting some plasticity in hunting areas. Particularly interesting was the tendency for snakes to disperse from specific hibernacula in the same general direction to the same general areas. We propose some possible reasons for this dispersal pattern.

Deer, drought, and warfare: Managing risk in the central Illinois river valley (CIRV) from the eleventh through fourteenth centuries

We investigated how Mississippian residents of the Central Illinois River Valley (CIRV) altered their hunting strategies in response to climate change and warfare in the 13th and 14th centuries. The CIRV, located in west-central Illinois just north of Greater Cahokia, was characterized by optimal climatic conditions in the 11th and 12th centuries, followed by centuries of drought and warfare. We integrated paleoclimatic reconstructions and evidence of violence with bone collagen and apatite isotopic analyses on white-tailed deer remains to investigate how CIRV residents minimized risks associated with white-tailed deer hunting. This is the first study in this region to effectively use δ13Capatite measurements to show the selective consumption of maize by white-tailed deer. Our results indicate that there were varied responses to climate change and conflict that were socially contingent upon community size. Notably, deer hunted by residents of Roskamp, occupied in the 13th century during the period of warfare, had highly elevated δ13Capatite values, demonstrating residents partook in garden hunting.

Distribution of InvasiveAedesMosquitoes in West-Central Illinois, 2014–18: Record Updates forAedes japonicusandAe. albopictus

A comprehensive surveillance of Aedes mosquitoes in west-central Illinois has not been conducted in recent years, resulting in incomplete distribution records for several Illinois counties. As of 2014, out of 102 Illinois counties, active populations of Ae. japonicus had been confirmed in 15 counties, and Ae. albopictus confirmed in 34 counties. The Miller laboratory at Western Illinois University (WIU) began the WIU Vector Biology Initiative (WIU-VBI) in 2014 to address the lack of mosquito surveillance in west-central Illinois. Through this effort, the presence of Ae. japonicus was confirmed for the 1st time in Fulton, Hancock, and Schuyler counties, IL, from 2014 to 2018. Actively breeding populations were confirmed in Cass, Fulton, McDonough, and Schuyler counties, IL. Additionally, Ae. albopictus was observed for the 1st time in Cass, Fulton, Hancock, McDonough, and Schuyler counties, IL, in 2016 and 2017, with active breeding populations in Cass and McDonough counties, IL.

Uptake of screening mammogram in West Central Illinois during the COVID-19 pandemic: lessons learned

Objectives. The study aims to reveal the trend of mammogram uptake in seventeen rural counties in Illinois to understand how the COVID-19 pandemic influenced breast cancer screening in the area. Material and methods. Aggregated data on mammography screening for West Central Illinois was provided by the Illinois Hospital Association. Data for 2018 and 2019 was used to determine the typical monthly and annual screenings for the two years before the onset of COVID-19. Then, the two years’ data was compared to the 2020 data. The monthly mean values for the aggregated 2018 and 2019 data were generated as the base “year” to compare with the monthly value for 2020. Paired t-test analysis was used to find if there were any statistically significant differences between the years and between the base year and 2020. Results. January 2020 revealed an uptick to 2921, which is more than the uptake for January 2018 (2700) and January 2019 (2488), and 13% greater than the mean value of 2594 for the previous two years. This was followed by a gradual decrease in uptake in February 2020 by 4% compared to previous years at a mean of 2518 and a further decline in March (44%), with a drastic fall (98%) by April 2020 at 56 screening mammograms in all 17 counties. The lowest uptake in any three months occurred from March through May 2020. Compared to previous years, an increase in uptake was noted across the region in 2020 June (8%) and July (4%) after the pandemic restrictions were relaxed. Overall, the total uptake in 2020 was 15% less than the average annual uptake for 2018–2019 with a deficit of 5537. There was no statistically significant difference in mammogram uptake across the three years. Conclusions. The findings reveal that there was a significant reduction in uptake during the pandemic restriction period. However, increased uptake during the rest of the year effectively mitigated this reduction to such an extent that there was no statistically significant downturn compared to each of the previous two years. A rising trend in total annual uptake noted in preceding years could have continued without the COVID-19 event.

Platymerella—a cool-water virgianid brachiopod fauna in southern Laurentia during the earliest Silurian

AbstractPlatymerella from the lower Red Mountain Formation in Georgia and Tennessee, the Bowling Green Dolomite of west-central Illinois, and the Elwood Dolomite of northeastern Illinois represents a paleosubtropical, cool-water occurrence of virgianid brachiopods in Laurentia during the early Silurian (middle–late Rhuddanian). These occurrences were located in the southern Appalachian foreland basin and the distal end of the Sebree Trough, likely subjected to frequent cool-water current and upwelling from Gondwana. Compared with broadly coeval species of Virgiana from lower paleotropical to equatorial latitudes, Platymerella has significantly smaller, dorsoventrally flattened shells, with subequal ventral and dorsal umbones and beaks that extend only slightly above the hinge line. Relative to its shell size, however, Platymerella has more prominent thickening of the shell wall, median septum, spondylium, and hinge plates than Virgiana, resembling more closely the extravagant shell thickening of Tcherskidium and Proconchidium from the Late Ordovician (late Katian) equatorial regions. The thickening of hinge plates resulted in the formation of a pseudocruralium, which separates Platymerella from Virgiana. In latest Ordovician–earliest Silurian virgianids, there was a general morphological gradient toward a smaller shell, reduction in the ventral-valve convexity, and reduction in the size and height of the ventral umbo from paleoequatorial to southern subtropical regions, with Platymerella representing the most southerly forms.

Seasonal Occurrence of Adult Carabid Beetles (Coleoptera: Carabidae) in West-Central Illinois

Abstract The Carabidae is a diverse family of beetles with many species of interest in conservation and biological control. Carabid beetle adult seasonal activity patterns were studied in a west-central Illinois forest/reconstructed tallgrass prairie matrix over a 2-yr period using pitfall traps. We found a threefold or greater difference in carabid abundance between years. Despite lower abundance, a second year of sampling yielded seven previously undetected species. Abundance and species richness were greatest in May–July and lower in August–October. Relative abundance and species richness were consistent among months between years. Shannon diversity and effective number of species were lowest in June and July. Cyclotrachelus sodalis (LeConte) and Chlaenius platyderus Chaudoir were the two most abundant species, comprising 54.3% of total captures. These species were most abundant in July and June, respectively. Most species showed greatest abundance in spring or early summer, and declined thereafter. Collections of several species were suggestive of bimodal seasonal patterns. Carabid species composition differed significantly among months, but not between years. Our results document seasonal variation in carabid abundance and species composition, and show that sampling throughout the growing season, and multiple sampling years, provide substantial benefits for assessments of carabid diversity in this region.

The Influence of Fire and Other Environmental Factors on Terrestrial Gastropod Species Composition in an Oak-Hickory Woodland of West-Central Illinois

Terrestrial gastropods are important herbivores, prey, and as decomposers in woodlands of the Midwestern USA. Vegetation structure and composition are dynamic and may influence gastropod abundance and distribution, but relationships among gastropod communities and environmental variables are understudied. We burned three treatment units in an oak-hickory woodland during 2004 and conducted additional burns on two of those treatment units, one in 2014 and the other in 2015. In May and August 2016, we collected leaf litter containing gastropods from transects within these three burn treatment units and used 19 environmental variables that were potentially important to gastropods. Environmental variables were associated with herbaceous and woody vegetation, ground cover, physiography, and burn history. We identified 14 species of gastropods at the study site. No significant environmental models were found for gastropod abundance, richness, effective number of species (based on Shannon entropy), or effective number of species (based on the Gini-Simpson index). Statistically significant associations among gastropods and environmental variables were seen in three species. Euchemotrema leaii was associated with areas having low coverage of shrubs and other perennials, and abundant leaf litter, whereas Neohelix alleni was positively associated with leaf litter and was abundant in areas with low total cover. Glyphyalinia indentata was associated with higher elevation transects, may be impacted by recent burning, and was found in areas with greater amounts of grasses and vines.

Transregional Social Fields of the Early Mississippian Midcontinent

This paper employs concepts from Bourdieu’s theory of social fields and contemporary research on transnationalism to explore the complicated history of population movement, culture contact, and interaction that fueled the origins of Mississippian society in the greater Cahokia area and closely related socio-political developments in the Central Illinois River Valley (CIRV) of west-central Illinois. We offer a new take on Mississippian origins and the history of culture contact in the CIRV, arguing that interregional simultaneity and inter-group collaboration played an important part of the early processes of Mississippianization in the North American Midwest. By decentering Cahokia in our explanation of Mississippian origins in the greater Midwest, we argue for a long-term persistence of traditional pre-Mississippian practices in the CIRV region, beginning with the first documented engagement among Cahokians and Illinois Valley groups in the early eleventh century until the beginning of the thirteenth century AD.

Family’s Story and Connections Move Major Hearing Health Legislation

You have accessThe ASHA LeaderFirst Person on the Last Page1 Oct 2019Family’s Story and Connections Move Major Hearing Health LegislationThe father of an educational audiologist’s client propels passage of a bill requiring hearing-device coverage. Tena McNamaraAuD, CCC-A/SLP Tena McNamara Google Scholar More articles by this author , AuD, CCC-A/SLP https://doi.org/10.1044/leader.FPLP.24102019.72 SectionsAboutPDF ToolsAdd to favorites ShareFacebookTwitterLinked In A new law in Illinois requires health insurers to cover hearing instruments for children. And the family of one of my clients played a major role in getting that legislation passed. Signed into law on Aug. 22, 2018, House Bill 4516 amends the Illinois Insurance Code, the Health Maintenance Organization Act, and the Voluntary Health Services Plans Act to mandate hearing device coverage for children through age 18 years. When we learned the bill had been introduced in February 2018, my first instinct was to contact Clint and Sarah Drury, the parents of one of my students. Their daughter Sawyer, 11, has Mondini dysplasia, resulting in a bilateral moderate-to-profound sensorineural hearing loss. During the five or so years I have worked with Sawyer as an educational audiologist, I forged a close working relationship with the family. The Drurys remember the time Sawyer was initially diagnosed with hearing loss as life-changing. They were stunned at the price of hearing technology and totally unprepared for the cost. They had family insurance coverage, but amplification devices and related services were not covered. They knew firsthand how beneficial the bill would be to families of children with hearing loss. The Drurys had been staunch advocates for hearing loss-related causes—for example, along with some help from Sawyer’s school speech-language pathologist, Sarah Moon, they raised approximately $7,000 for the Hearing Loss Association of America’s Walk4Hearing—so I knew they would work hard and be dedicated to promoting this legislation. In addition, Clint’s professional position as executive director of the West Central Illinois Building and Construction Trades Council had prepared him for work with the state legislature; he has developed relationships with many legislators throughout the state. Clint promptly began promoting the bill in the General Assembly. He shared his family’s story, illustrating the hardships that parents encounter when they must pay out-of-pocket for hearing instruments for their children. By contacting dozens of senators and representatives, he boosted the number of sponsors for the bill. Clint’s efforts were not, however, self-serving. His family’s insurance is through a union health and welfare fund not required to comply with legislative mandates. But he continued to work on behalf of the children with hearing loss who would benefit from the legislation. The efforts of the Drurys, other families, and the Illinois Speech-Language-Hearing Association paid off. The bipartisan legislation passed both the House and Senate with little opposition. Now, insurers included under the mandate must provide coverage for one hearing instrument every 36 months, along with repairs, selection, fitting, adjustments, and earmolds when medically necessary. I learned two important lessons from this experience. The first is to know your clients and their families beyond their educational or medical needs. They may have skills and knowledge that can help you professionally and aid with specialized practice needs. This is especially true with legislation. Second, I have learned the power of personal and human-interest stories in influencing government officials. Legislators want to know how prospective laws may affect their constituents, and these testimonials are effective in illustrating that. Author Notes Tena McNamara, AuD, CCC-A/SLP, professor emeritus at Eastern Illinois University, is a pediatric audiologist at Mueller Pediatric Therapy in East Peoria, Illinois. [email protected] Advertising Disclaimer | Advertise With Us Advertising Disclaimer | Advertise With Us Additional Resources FiguresSourcesRelatedDetails Volume 24Issue 10October 2019 Get Permissions Add to your Mendeley library History Published in print: Oct 1, 2019 Metrics Downloaded 523 times Topicsleader_do_tagleader-topicsasha-article-typesCopyright & Permissions© 2019 American Speech-Language-Hearing AssociationLoading ...

Evidence of Skeletal Fluorosis at the Ray Site, Illinois, USA: a pathological assessment and discussion of environmental factors

ObjectiveTo carefully assess skeletal lesions in close environment context in order to evaluate whether skeletal fluorosis was present in individuals living in the prehistoric Midwest, USA. MaterialsSkeletal remains from minimally 117 individuals recovered from the Ray Site, located in western Illinois (USA) and dated to the Middle/early Late Woodland periods (50 BC-AD 400). MethodsMacroscopic evaluation of all recovered skeletal elements. ResultsEight individuals display a constellation of abnormal bony changes, including osteosclerosis, a high frequency of fractures, and dental abnormalities. ConclusionsThe osteosclerotic changes along with the naturally high fluoride content of west central Illinois soil and water suggests the presence of skeletal fluorosis. SignificanceThis is the first report of skeletal fluorosis from archaeologically recovered human remains from North America. LimitationsThe ambiguous nature of the skeletal changes associated with fluorosis, especially in the less severe stages of the disease, renders determination of the etiology difficult. Suggestions for Further ResearchThe continuation of paleopathological investigations of fluoride toxicity within archaeological communities recovered from this region with emphasis on the incorporation of biomedical and environmental data. Furthermore, complementary analyses of the chemical composition and the histological presentation of the skeletons could provide support for this diagnosis.

Assessment of a Restored Wetland in West-Central Illinois

Although natural wetlands provide important ecosystem services such as flood control, carbon sequestration, and habitat for wetland plants and amphibians, it is uncertain to what degree restored wetlands provide these services. To this end, we assessed the hydrology, soils, vegetation, and anuran relative call frequency in a restored emergent floodplain wetland in west-central, Illinois. We employed a stratified random design to sample across a hydrologic gradient from wetter to drier zones in 3 cells of the wetland. We monitored surface water levels and found that cells 1 and 2 showed long periods of inundation, while cell 3 exhibited a more pulsed hydrology based on rainfall. Soil moisture content exhibited a significant trend across the hydrologic gradient, increasing from the drier to the wetter zones. We identified 46 plant species, 14 of which were planted as part of the restoration. Plant communities differed among cells, with cells 1 and 2 having more than 37% obligate wetland species, while cell 3 had only 22% obligate wetland species. Over 30 survey nights, we heard 10 anuran species calling and observed 1 Ambystoma (mole salamander). Hydrology played an important role in site usage by amphibians, especially in cell 3, where the absence of water precluded egg laying.

Reassessing the chronology of the Mississippian Central Illinois River Valley using Bayesian analysis

ABSTRACTChronology building has long served as a major focus of archaeological interest in the Central Illinois River valley (CIRV) of west-central Illinois. Previous methods have relied primarily upon relative dating techniques (e.g., ceramic seriation) as a means of sorting out temporal relationships between sites. This study represents the first investigation into the utility of Bayesian techniques (which consider radiocarbon dates in context with archaeological information) in the CIRV. We present the results of a detailed ceramic seriation of the region, data that we use as a priori information in our Bayesian models. We then offer contiguous, overlapping, and sequential models of site occupations in the Mississippian CIRV, review the output and appropriateness of each model, and consider their implications for the pace of sociopolitical change in the region.

An Analysis of Malaise-Trap Effectiveness in Assessing Robber Fly (Diptera: Asilidae) Species Richness

Abstract Little quantitative information is available on the effectiveness of Malaise traps in estimating insect species richness. I used the Chao1 nonparametric species richness estimator to evaluate the effectiveness of Malaise traps in assessing species richness of robber flies in west-central Illinois burned and unburned deciduous forest and tallgrass prairie habitats. Two of 12 traps yielded asymptotic species richness values, with remaining traps requiring fold increases ranging from 3.1 to 20.9 to reach asymptotic richness. Overall, observed species richness was over 85% of estimated species richness, but a 3.9-fold sample-size increase would have been required to reach asymptotic species richness. For individual habitats, estimated fold increases in sample size ranging from 1.9 to 9.7 would have been needed to reach asymptotic species richness. These results show that Malaise traps are effective in sampling robber flies, but asymptotic species richness would be difficult to achieve. Lower target c...

Late Middle Archaic settlement systems in West-Central Illinois

Data from a sample of late Middle Archaic sites in west-central Illinois are examined in light of Binford’s forager–collector model. Quantitative methods (correspondence and diversity analyses) are applied to the lithic data from the sites. It is suggested that a mix of mobility strategies was employed in the region during late Middle Archaic. Large, possibly multiseason, valley located residential sites were occupied during the warm season. People occupying such sites were logistically mobile and employed logistical sites to supply some of the resources. In contrast, smaller, upland residential sites were occupied by few people for shorter durations during the cold season. People were residentially mobile while occupying the upland residential sites. The methods demonstrated in the paper are applicable to other regions and time periods.

Malaise Trap Sampling Efficiency for Bees (Hymenoptera: Apoidea) in a Restored Tallgrass Prairie

Summary Effective assessment of bee (Hymenoptera: Apoidea) diversity is essential for informed bee conservation policies. In this study, the effectiveness of Malaise traps in assessing bee species richness in a westcentral Illinois restored prairie was examined using the Chao1 nonparametric richness estimator. Individual traps varied greatly in abundance and species richness of bees collected, and substantially greater trapping effort would have been needed to achieve Chao1 estimates. Malaise traps provide a potentially effective means of augmenting bowl trap inventories, but more studies on Malaise trap performance and comparisons with bowl traps are needed, particularly in heterogeneous environments.

Linear enamel hypoplasia in Schroeder Mounds (11HE177): A Late Woodland period site in Illinois

Adults and subadults recovered from the Late Woodland period (∼A.D. 800–1100) Schroeder Mounds site (11HE177) from west-central Illinois who preserve permanent incisors and/or canines (N=46) were examined for the presence of macroscopically visible linear enamel hypoplasia (LEH) by case, by tooth type, number of hypoplastic defects by tooth type, and estimated developmental age of occurrence. The raw case frequency of LEH (16/46) is 34.8 percent. The Schroeder Mounds subadults (N=15) have a higher case frequency (i.e., 60 percent versus 22.6 percent), number of stress episodes per tooth, and a longer developmental age range of hypoplastic defects than the adults. With no subsistence or settlement context, the Schroeder Mounds sample was compared to published (solely) adult LEH data from eight western Illinois sites segregable as either Middle (∼50 B.C.–A.D. 400) and Late Woodland period semi-sedentary forager-horticulturalists or Mississippian period (∼A.D. 1150–1250) sedentary (i.e., large aggregated village) maize-intensive agriculturalists. The adult Schroeder Mounds LEH patterns align with the Woodland samples with minor differences inclining the Schroeder sample toward a forager-farmer subsistence/settlement strategy. The Schroeder Mounds subadult patterns and prevalence may reflect factors that contributed toward their early death. Whether these factors can be framed by the subsistence/settlement system will require comparative data.

Investigating fluoride toxicity in a Middle Woodland population from west-central Illinois: A discussion of methods for evaluating the influence of environment and diet in paleopathological analyses

Diet is a key factor in the health of individuals and of communities, both ancient and modern. In studies of ancient health, termed paleopathology, most paleodiet researchers have focused on estimates of the nutritional quality of diet across distinctive menus, comparatively evaluating quality of life across space and time. Health, however, can also be affected by environmental dietary factors, including toxic levels or deficiencies of trace elements and minerals. In this paper, we emphasize the importance of rigorous differential diagnosis in paleopathology and the multiplicity of factors that may influence an individual's response to environmental stressors. Our example develops from observations of pathology in remains from the Ray site, a 2000year-old Middle Woodland cemetery from west-central Illinois. We had previously developed a differential diagnosis for an environmental condition, wherein an abundance of fluoride placed people at risk for poor health. Here we use this differential diagnosis, published in detail elsewhere, as an example to illustrate the importance of linking environmental, dietary, epidemiological, and physiological factors in developing a well-supported differential diagnosis. We also consider directions for future studies that link molecular biology, geo-chemical and isotopic analysis to knowledge of past fluoride toxicity.

A Survey of Terrestrial Gastropods of the Alice L. Kibbe Life Science Station in West-Central Illinois

Abstract Terrestrial gastropods are vital components in terrestrial ecosystems and are thought to play a key role in litter decomposition and nutrient release in temperate and tropical forests. As part of an effort to expand our knowledge of gastropod diversity in west-central Illinois, we conducted a survey of terrestrial gastropods of the Alice L. Kibbe Life Science Station in west-central Illinois from April to May 2013. We sampled at 9 different sites within representative stands of 5 of the prevalent forest types at the station and documented a total of 20 species representing 11 families and 17 genera, including 12 new records for Hancock County. The Polygyridae was the most diverse family (7 species). Although this study sheds additional light on the terrestrial gastropod fauna of west-central Illinois, further surveys are needed to establish baseline data and assess future trends in response to habitat modification and climate change throughout the region.

Competition for Pollination and the Evolution of Flowering Time.

Competition for Pollination and the Evolution of Flowering Time.