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Community Ecology, Climate Change And Ecohydrology In Desert Grassland And Shrubland, Matthew Petrie
Community Ecology, Climate Change And Ecohydrology In Desert Grassland And Shrubland, Matthew Petrie
Biology ETDs
This dissertation explores the climate, ecology and hydrology of Chihuahuan Desert ecosystems in the context of global climate change. In coming decades, the southwestern United States is projected to experience greater temperature-driven aridity, possible small decreases in annual precipitation, and a later onset of summer monsoon rainfall. These changes may have profound consequences for ecological systems in the Chihuahuan Desert, which are intensely water-limited and respond to even small pulses of moisture availability. The first chapter (Chapter 2) compares change in the properties of monsoon season precipitation from 1910-2010 in the northern Chihuahuan Desert region to local variability in monsoon …
Spatial And Seasonal Variations In Aridification Across Southwest North America, Shannon Miller Jones
Spatial And Seasonal Variations In Aridification Across Southwest North America, Shannon Miller Jones
Earth and Planetary Sciences ETDs
The Southwestern region of North America (SWNA) is projected to become more arid throughout the 21st century as precipitation (P) and evaporation (E) rates change with increasing global temperatures. Trends in the regional surface moisture balance (P−E) of SWNA vary between the arid southern subregion (mostly Northern Mexico) and the more temperate northern subregion (Southwest US), depending on the relative contributions of cold and warm season P and E. Interpreting the spatial and seasonal variations of the projected aridification is important for understanding the potential impacts of climate change on SWNA regional hydrology. We compare the projected trends in P, …
Establishment Of Larrea Tridentata At The Northern Edge Of The Modern Mojave Desert: Insights From Neotoma Paleomiddens, Clare Steinberg
Establishment Of Larrea Tridentata At The Northern Edge Of The Modern Mojave Desert: Insights From Neotoma Paleomiddens, Clare Steinberg
Biology ETDs
Shifting climates affect the composition of biological communities. If environmental conditions change sufficiently, new species can invade, leading to large-scale community turnover. Understanding how and why such shifts occur is crucial in this era of anthropogenic global change. Paleontological studies provide a valuable long-term perspective of the dynamics of community turnover. Here, we examine changes in the plant community over the past 34 thousand years in what is now the northern Mojave Desert. This time period includes the last glacial maximum as well as numerous smaller climatic fluctuations in the Holocene and the end of the Pleistocene. We quantified plant …
Abiotic Drivers Of Chihuahuan Desert Plant Communities, Laura Marie Ladwig
Abiotic Drivers Of Chihuahuan Desert Plant Communities, Laura Marie Ladwig
Biology ETDs
Within grasslands, precipitation, fire, nitrogen (N) addition, and extreme temperatures influence community composition and ecosystem function. The differential influences of these abiotic factors on Chihuahuan Desert grassland communities was examined within the Sevilleta National Wildlife Refuge, located in central New Mexico, U.S.A. Although fire is a natural disturbance in many grasslands, fire during drought temporarily increased forb cover and decreased grass cover for several years. The seasonal timing of fire was not important, rather community recovery was more influenced by the persistent drought conditions. N deposition is increasing worldwide due to human activities, and although additional N increases productivity and …