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Using Environmental And Site-Specific Variables To Model Current And Future Distribution Of Red Spruce (Picea Rubens Sarg.) Forest Habitat In West Virginia, Nathan R. Beane
Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports
Red spruce forests are a remnant ecosystem from the interglacial period of the Wisconsin glaciation and today are considered one of the most threatened forest ecosystems in the eastern United States. The extent of red spruce forests in West Virginia prior to exploitative logging which occurred from 1880--1920 is estimated at 190,000 ha, but today, these forests are estimated to occupy no more than 24,000 ha, resulting primarily from intense anthropogenic disturbances. With the extensive loss of presettlement habitat for red spruce in West Virginia, this species is a high priority for restoration, as these forests offer the unique habitat …
Effects Of Acid Mine Drainage And Acid Precipitation On Leaf Litter Breakdown Rates In Appalachian Headwater Streams, Mary Fiona Stewart
Effects Of Acid Mine Drainage And Acid Precipitation On Leaf Litter Breakdown Rates In Appalachian Headwater Streams, Mary Fiona Stewart
Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports
Acid precipitation and acid mine drainage have dramatically altered chemical conditions and biological assemblages in streams throughout the central Appalachians. Effects of acidification on functional stream processes such as organic matter decomposition, however, remain poorly understood. The objectives of this study were to: (1) quantify differences in organic matter decomposition among reference streams, streams impacted by acid precipitation, and streams impacted by acid mine drainage; and (2) determine if lowered decomposition rates are the result of reduced microbial activity or altered invertebrate shredder assemblages or both. I quantified water chemistry, organic matter decomposition, microbial activity, and macroinvertebrate community structure in …
Ecology Of Trifolium Stoloniferum (Muhl. Ex A. Eaton), A Federally Endangered Vascular Plant, At The Fernow Experimental Forest In West Virginia, John Q. Burkhart
Ecology Of Trifolium Stoloniferum (Muhl. Ex A. Eaton), A Federally Endangered Vascular Plant, At The Fernow Experimental Forest In West Virginia, John Q. Burkhart
Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports
This thesis presents work addressing the ecology of Trifolium stoloniferum, a federally endangered vascular plant species, in the Fernow Experimental Forest, West Virginia. In this thesis, I describe the historical ecology of this species and make a case that at one time it occurred in great abundance in association with trails created by large mammals and humans that intersected rich, open forests. Similar conditions exist at the Fernow Experimental Forest in West Virginia, but instead of large mammals, the requisite soil disturbance, control of competing vegetation, and canopy perforation are created by timber-harvesting related disturbances, particularly gap creation by tree …
Switchgrass Establishment And Growth For Biofuels And Carbon Sequestration On Reclaimed Mine Lands In Appalachia, Travis L. Keene
Switchgrass Establishment And Growth For Biofuels And Carbon Sequestration On Reclaimed Mine Lands In Appalachia, Travis L. Keene
Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports
Climate change mitigation and the high cost of transportation fuels have created an interest in utilizing biofuels to supplement the nation's energy portfolio. Switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) has been suggested as a possible biofuel feedstock because of its ability to produce large amounts of biomass over a wide range of growing conditions and its ability to sequester atmospheric carbon (C) into stable soil organic carbon. Appalachia has the potential to become a center of biofuel production with its large expanses of reclaimed mine land. Switchgrass production on surface mine land offers the opportunity to increase the land resources devoted to energy …
Roosting Ecology Of Bats In A Disturbed Landscape, Joshua B. Johnson
Roosting Ecology Of Bats In A Disturbed Landscape, Joshua B. Johnson
Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports
In 2007 and 2008, I examined roost selection of forest-interior dwelling northern myotis (Myotis septentrionalis) maternity colonies in stands treated with prescribed fire (hereafter, fire) and in unburned (hereafter, control) stands on the Fernow Experimental Forest, West Virginia. Using radio telemetry, I tracked 36 female northern myotis to 69 roost trees; 25 in the fire treatment and 44 in the control treatment. Using logistic regression and an information-theoretic model selection approach, I determined that within the fire treatment, northern myotis maternity colonies were more likely to use cavity trees that were smaller in diameter, higher in crown class, and located …
Plant Litter Decomposition In Mitigated And Reference Wetlands, Richard Tristan Gingerich
Plant Litter Decomposition In Mitigated And Reference Wetlands, Richard Tristan Gingerich
Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports
Decomposition of plant litter in wetlands influences many processes and is driven by a complex web of interacting forces. This makes litter decomposition a useful measure of wetland function and a possible means of judging wetland functional replacement in compensatory mitigation projects. However, the web of interacting forces that intricately connect decomposition to wetland function also make it difficult to identify the importance of individual variables. In order for decomposition to be used as a metric to judge wetland function, its driving forces must be better understood.;This study examined some of the variables that drive decomposition. Specifically, decomposition rates were …
Bat Use Of Created And Natural Wetlands, Marcia L. Maslonek
Bat Use Of Created And Natural Wetlands, Marcia L. Maslonek
Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports
Compensatory wetland mitigation is a common practice to account for wetland losses due to dredging and filling under the Clean Water Act, but successful replacement of function is rarely achieved. Small, isolated wetlands also receive no federal protection, and are usually not included in accounts of losses. Although latest reports show an increase in wetlands for the first time, this is due in large part to voluntary construction of open water ponds, while the loss of freshwater emergent wetlands continues to decline. Research on the wildlife functions of wetlands has focused on plants, invertebrates, avian or amphibian species. But wetlands …
Predicting Species Composition In An Eastern Hardwood Forest With The Use Of Digitally Derived Terrain Variables, Richard D. Flanigan
Predicting Species Composition In An Eastern Hardwood Forest With The Use Of Digitally Derived Terrain Variables, Richard D. Flanigan
Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports
This thesis addresses the need for improved classification of remotely sensed imagery in the complex hardwood forests of West Virginia. A geographic information system (GIS) was used in conjunction with forest plot data to develop a model to predict species composition in the eastern hardwood forest of West Virginia. The study area was located on the West Virginia University Research Forest (WVURF) in northern West Virginia. Terrain variables including aspect, curvature and slope change drastically at a local scale within the forest to greatly influence species composition. Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data was collected for the entire WVURF, which …
Stream Fish Metacommunity And Metapopulation Ecology In A Mined Appalachian Watershed, Roy Worth Martin
Stream Fish Metacommunity And Metapopulation Ecology In A Mined Appalachian Watershed, Roy Worth Martin
Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports
Chapter one is a direct empirical evaluation of metacommunity theory using stream fishes in a heavily mined and least impaired region of the Monongahela River basin. Metacommunity ecology, a new multi-scale paradigm, has provided important insights into mechanisms controlling regional patterns of assemblage structure. Metacommunity ecology offers four competing hypothetical models---neutral, patch dynamic, species sorting, and mass effect---each differing slightly in its underlying mechanistic framework.;Our results overwhelmingly supported the mass effect metacommunity model, which suggests that regional patterns of diversity are maintained by local habitat heterogeneity and dispersal among local assemblages. However, our findings also indicated that natural communities are …
Ecological And Economic Impacts Of Wildfires On An Appalachian Oak Forest In Southern West Virginia, Katharina U. Mueller Wood
Ecological And Economic Impacts Of Wildfires On An Appalachian Oak Forest In Southern West Virginia, Katharina U. Mueller Wood
Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports
Oaks (Quercus spp.) are considered a fire adapted species and fire disturbances throughout the lifecycle have been proposed to be necessary for maintaining oak dominated stands. Wildfire has been blamed for significant losses in sawtimber volume. A total of 164 points were sampled in stands that had experienced between zero to six wildfires over 36 years in Cabwaylingo State Forest (CSF), West Virginia. The wildfires have affected different strata and species of forest vegetation in different ways. While total overstory density decreased from 242 to 38 TPA with increasing fire frequency, oak density was highest in areas of three fires. …