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A Social-Ecological Examination Of Moose In Maine: Habitat, Management, And Changing Seasonality, Asha Dimatteo-Lepape Aug 2021

A Social-Ecological Examination Of Moose In Maine: Habitat, Management, And Changing Seasonality, Asha Dimatteo-Lepape

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Maine is a New England state with rich ecosystems and diverse opportunities for enjoying the outdoors. Maine is well known as a popular nature-based tourist destination, and is often associated with its notable moose population. Social-ecological systems in Maine are highly intertwined, and as such, are especially susceptible to impacts resulting from climate change. Moose health in the state is already being negatively impacted by climate change with high infestation rates of winter tick resulting in declining moose health and high moose calf mortality. Given that late winter is a time of high stress and increased mortality of moose due …


The Impacts Of Climate Change On The Gulf Of Maine Northern Shrimp (Pandalus Borealis) Distribution, Reproduction, And Life, Hsiao-Yun Chang Aug 2021

The Impacts Of Climate Change On The Gulf Of Maine Northern Shrimp (Pandalus Borealis) Distribution, Reproduction, And Life, Hsiao-Yun Chang

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Gulf of Maine northern shrimp (Pandalus borealis) once supported a significant winter fishery for the Gulf of Maine (GOM). Although the shrimp fishery is not comparable to the lobster business, it provided fishermen and many coastal communities jobs and incomes in winters after lobster seasons. However, a moratorium has been put on the shrimp fishery since 2014 due to record low population abundance and perceived recruitment failures. The recruitment failures have been correlated with warming water temperatures over the past decade. The GOM has been recognized as experiencing rapid warming as a result of global climate change. …


Sexual Dimorphism Of Thermal Preference In Florida Scrub Lizards (Sceloporus Woodi) And Predicting Response To Climate Change In Two Rare Habitats, Sidney E. Anderson Jan 2021

Sexual Dimorphism Of Thermal Preference In Florida Scrub Lizards (Sceloporus Woodi) And Predicting Response To Climate Change In Two Rare Habitats, Sidney E. Anderson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Florida Scrub Lizard (Sceloporus woodi) is endemic to Florida, where it inhabits fragments of xeric sandhill uplands including endangered long-leaf pine and sand pine scrub habitats. Lizards depend on a predictable range of temperatures to maximize their growth and productivity, and to do so, they shuttle among various thermal micro-environments. Thus, the spatial distribution of temperatures in the habitat is important. Habitats dominated by either high or low extremes of an organism’s preference are energetically costly and dangerous (less optimal), especially to gravid females. This study examines thermal preference of a near-threatened species that also inhabits increasingly rare habitats. …


A Deep Life: The Application Of Stable Isotopes To Understand Deep-Sea Environments With A Focus On Latitudinal Gradients, Laurissa Christie Jul 2020

A Deep Life: The Application Of Stable Isotopes To Understand Deep-Sea Environments With A Focus On Latitudinal Gradients, Laurissa Christie

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The deep-sea, defined as the area 200 m below the surface, is facing emerging chemical, physical and biological stressors. Currently, very little is known regarding deep-sea ecosystems both globally and in the Arctic. In this thesis I undertook a literature review on the current understanding of global deep-sea ecosystems through the use of stable isotopes. Specifically, I synthesized the available literature on spatial variation, energy pathways, depth, temporal variation, feeding behaviour, niche, trophic position and body size isotopic trends. This thesis then presents a case study examining the isotopic niche of five teleost and two decapod species within Arctic deep-sea …