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Disturbance-Based Management And Plant Species Change In Massachusetts Sandplain Heathlands Over The Past Two Decades, Kirsten Martin
Disturbance-Based Management And Plant Species Change In Massachusetts Sandplain Heathlands Over The Past Two Decades, Kirsten Martin
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Massachusetts sandplain heathlands are habitats of conservation concern, harboring many rare plant species and providing habitat for animals that depend on openlands. These heathlands are threatened by human development, shrub encroachment in the absence of disturbance, and potentially increasing soil nutrient levels. Sandplain heathlands are managed with prescribed fire, in order to maintain their open structure and maintain species diversity. In order to assess how past management was correlated with species change, I used a data set that spanned twenty years from three different heathlands in Massachusetts. I looked for correlations between management and species change. Correlations between species change …
Species And Habitat Interactions Of The Gopher Tortoise: A Keystone Species?, Christopher Catano
Species And Habitat Interactions Of The Gopher Tortoise: A Keystone Species?, Christopher Catano
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Species-species and species-habitat interactions have been demonstrated to be important in influencing diversity across a variety of ecosystems. Despite generalities in the importance of these interactions, appropriate mechanisms to explain them are absent in many systems. In sandhill systems of the southeast U.S., gopher tortoises have been hypothesized to be a crucial species in the maintenance of diversity and function. However, the mechanisms and magnitude in which they influence their communities and habitats have rarely been empirically quantified. I examined how habitat structure influences tortoise abandonment of burrows and how tortoise densities influence nonvolant vertebrate community diversity. Tortoise burrow abandonment …
Responses Of The Florida Mouse (Podomys Floridanus) To Habitat Management, Jason Depue
Responses Of The Florida Mouse (Podomys Floridanus) To Habitat Management, Jason Depue
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
The Florida mouse (Podomys floridanus), a species restricted to the Lake Wales Ridge and the Atlantic Coastal Ridge, is recognized by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission as a species of special concern, highlighting its status as a species that is threatened by habitat loss statewide. Publicly owned lands offer protection for the species, but management is generally focused on protecting biodiversity in general and not a particular species. The response of the Florida mouse to land management practices such as mechanical treatment and prescribed fires is poorly documented. This research examined the population responses of Florida mice on …