Life Sciences Commons^™

Importance Of Forests Outside Protected Area Networks For Large-Seeded Tree Species And Their Large-Bodied Avian Frugivores--A Study In Vazhachal Reserve Forest, India, Aditi Achyut Lele

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Western Ghats, the mountain chain running along the west coast of India, is one of eight global hotspots of biodiversity and is particularly notable for its endemic flora and fauna. Yet only 10% of this land enjoys the protected status. Vast forested lands exist outside the protected network of national parks and wildlife sanctuaries in the form of reserve forests, community forests, and private lands. The present study sought to understand the role of such forests in the context of ecological system involving large-seeded tree species that depend on large-bodied avian frugivores for seed dispersal. I conducted a study over …

Spatio-Temporal Reconstruction Of Remote Sensing Observations, Kamrul Khan

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The USDA Forest Service aims to use satellite imagery for monitoring and predicting changes in forest conditions over time within the country. We specifically focus on a 230, 400 hectares region in north-central Wisconsin between 2003 - 2012. The auxiliary data collected from the satellite imagery of this region are relatively dense in space and time and can be used to efficiently predict how the forest condition changed over that decade. However, these records have a significant proportion of missing values due to weather conditions and system failures. To fill in these missing values, we build spaciotemporal models based on …

Flow Regime Influences On Stream And Riparian Soil Carbon Dynamics In The Ozark Highlands And Boston Mountains Of Arkansas, Allyn Dodd

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The natural flow regime exerts primacy over lotic ecosystem patterns and processes. However, little work has examined the influence of flow regime on instream and riparian carbon (C) dynamics in minimally-impacted, temperate forested systems. To date, most research efforts have focused on characterizing C movement and transformations across biomes and land use categories; however, flow regime represents an overlooked, finer level of detail that may drive differences in ecosystem function. My dissertation objective was to measure C fixation and movement within and across multiple environmental spheres (e.g. within stream channels, between stream surfaces and the atmosphere, and from riparian soils …

Analysis Of The White-Tailed Deer Population Of Hobbs State Park, Jesse Morrison

Biological and Agricultural Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

White Tailed deer (Odocoileus virginianus) are the only deer species native to Arkansas, playing a crucial role in the ecosystem. Healthy deer populations are important for environmental and human wellbeing, and overpopulation can lead to poor herd health, overgrazing, increased vehicle collisions, and transmission of diseases. Monitoring deer populations through surveys can be a useful tool in managing wildlife and maintaining Arkansas’ natural resources.

This study analyzed trends in Hobbs State Park’s deer population and estimated the current roadside deer population of the park. Data from past surveys was analyzed for trends using a Mann-Kendall Test, and a distance sampling …