Life Sciences Commons^™

Advancing Assessments Of Climate Change Vulnerability Of West Virginia Watersheds, Joseph T. Molina

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports

As climate change is becoming increasingly recognized as a threat to aquatic ecosystems, climate adaptation planning, in both the long- and short-term, is becoming more common in natural resource management. There is a need within conservation agencies to develop methodologies and assessments that support adaptation planning to efficiently disperse conservation dollars and effectively strengthen ecological and community resilience as climate changes continue. My thesis aims to provide West Virginia natural resources managers with climate vulnerability assessments that can be used to determine where and how conservation efforts should be administered. Additionally, I demonstrate a methodology that can be built upon …

Quantifying The Effect Of Disturbance On Native Mojave Desert Shrubs, Tamara J. Wynne

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Disturbance can come in many different forms. In our studies, we looked at the impact of a solar photovoltaic facility on native plants growing inside and outside of the facility, alteration in precipitation (simulated) on four native shrubs and the impact of applying supplemental water as a function of volume and frequency to establish native shrubs such as might occur at restoration sites. Disturbance is becoming a more common phenomenon in many ecosystems throughout the world, increasing the need for studies that quantify the impact at the plant and ecosystem level. Each research project revealed different plant responses, such as …

Climate-Driven Selection Results In Powerful Geographic Framework For Predicting Phenotype, Alexandra Neild

Masters Theses

Our ability to prepare for and mitigate the likely ecological and evolutionary impacts of climate change largely depends upon our ability to predict the phenotypic responses of organisms that allow them to persist, adapt, and migrate along environmental stress gradients. Using fifteen populations of cottonwoods, a dominant riparian forest tree, that are distributed along elevation gradients and represent three genetic provenances, we hypothesized and show that: 1) populations within a provenance demonstrate parallel evolutionary responses to climatic gradients associated with elevation; and 2) the evolutionary effects of elevation on bud-break phenology varied by provenance. Across all populations, we find strong …

The Influence Of Temperature And Body Size On Food Consumption In Prairie Lizards (Sceloporus Consobrinus), Morgan Pelley

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Understanding the effect of temperature on physiological and digestive processes, such as voluntary consumption rate, is critical for assessing the impact of climate change. Food consumption is required for lizard survival and reproduction and its rate is dependent on temperature. For ectotherms, as temperatures increase, the amount of food consumed to meet the energy requirements related to survival and reproduction must also increase. Information on the amount of food voluntarily consumed may aid in determining if lizards can meet energy requirements. Such information could also aid in predicting survival of lizard populations, through construction of predictive climate change models. In …

Blue Mussel Hybrid Complex Shifts In The Gulf Of Maine Towards A Dominance Of Mytilus Edulis, Daniel Woods

Honors Program Theses

The Gulf of Maine (GOM) in the United States is the fastest warming body of water in the world. Due to a complex history of glaciation, the GOM has restricted circulation that causes it to function more akin to an enclosed sea. As climate change has disrupted the stable flow of the Gulf Stream, more warm-water currents are entering the GOM at higher frequency. This warming has had a profound impact on the distribution of the blue mussel, Mytilus spp., which inhabits the rocky intertidal habitat within the GOM as the main prey species to a keystone predator. Two sister …

Mitigation Of Negative Effects Of Ocean Change On Oysters By Eelgrass And Its Implications For Aquaculture In Midcoast Maine, Fiona G. Ralph

Honors Projects

Species interactions are important to organisms and to the ecosystems they inhabit. These interactions, sometimes facilitations, can result in increased resiliency for both species. When facilitation occurs, organisms co-assist with physiological and environmental stressors. As anthropogenic impacts become more stressful for modern organisms, these interactions could offer a solution for many species. Ocean acidification has been shown to be detrimental to many calcifying organisms including oysters. More acidic conditions can slow the process of shell calcification, which can slow growth rates. This effect could directly impact the robust oyster farming business in Midcoast Maine. Because of its possible importance to …

The Impact Of Tidal Elevation And Climate Change On The Growth And Performance Of Balanus Glandula, Sam Martin

Pitzer Senior Theses

Tidal elevation affects the survival, growth, and performance of intertidal organisms because it regulates their exposure to heat, waves, food availability, and a variety of other abiotic factors. While previous research has explored the relationship between temperature and the performance of the barnacle Balanus glandula, there are unanswered questions about how tidal elevation affects B. glandula performance and growth. I compared the growth of B. glandula at three tidal elevations in Friday Harbor, Washington, and estimated the metabolic cost of emersion at each tidal elevation using a cost equation gained from thermal performance curves and average daily maximum temperatures. …

Responses Of Juvenile Atlantic Salmon To Competition And Environmental Change: Implications For Performance In Maine Streams, Nicole C. Ramberg-Pihl

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

New England’s climate is changing faster than that of any other region in the continental United States. Over the last century, Maine has experienced an increase in annual temperature of approximately 1.48^oC along with a 15 percent increase in annual precipitation. Temperature and precipitation play vital roles in shaping the ecology of freshwater environments. Therefore, changes in regional climate could undermine the structure and stability of Maine’s freshwater systems as they currently exist.

Maine currently harbors the last wild populations of Atlantic salmon (Salmo salar) in the United States. Atlantic salmon were once abundant in Maine …

Bee Abundance Along A Tropical Montane Elevational Gradient And Implications For Crop Pollination Services, Kristin M. Conrad

Online Theses and Dissertations

Tropical forests are among the biologically richest ecosystems on Earth, but how most organisms in these forests will respond to a warming climate remains uncertain. Insects are expected to be highly responsive to climate change due to their short life cycles that are strongly influenced by temperature. Plants depend on pollinators to set seed and reproduce, and many animal populations rely on the resources provided by flowering plants. There is an urgent need to document elevational distributions and thermal specialization for tropical bee species to understand how these important pollinators may respond to warming temperatures. My four-year study (2016-2019) aims …

Ecology And Conservation Of Shrubland Bird Communities In The Eastern Ghats Of Indi, Anant Deshwal

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Anthropogenic disturbance, in its multiple facets represents a major threat to biodiversity and habitat quality. Consequently, extensive research is guided towards understanding anthropogenic disturbance and their effects on wildlife for development of wildlife management plans. However, for development of effective wildlife management plans it is imperative that we understand the habitat use and preference by local fauna along with effects of anthropogenic presence. In this dissertation, I studied the habitat usage and preferences of Shrubland birds in the Eastern Ghats of India during the pre-monsoon and post monsoon seasons. Eastern Ghats show a marked difference from pre-monsoon season to post-monsoon …

Effects Of Climate Variability: A Long-Term Perspective On Leaf Litter Processing In The Ogeechee River, Jose A. Sanchez

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Intergovernmental Panel for Climate Change (IPCC) predicts a rise in temperatures and changes to precipitation patterns for the 21^st century. These changes are expected to lead to a higher frequency of extreme events such as drought and floods which lead to the alteration of the hydrology, communities, and processes of freshwater ecosystems. Leaf litter decomposition in stream ecosystems is an important component of the energy and nutrient cycle representing a food source for aquatic organisms. This has made it a tool for assessing long term responses to disturbance due to changes in the assemblage of macroinvertebrates that …

Climatic Range Filling Of North American Trees, Benjamin Seliger

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Understanding the degree to which species distributions are controlled by climate is crucial for forecasting biodiversity responses to climate change. Climatic equilibrium, when species are found in all places which are climatically suitable, is a fundamental assumption of species distribution models, but there is evidence in support of climate disequilibria in species ranges. Long-lived, sessile organisms such as trees may be especially vulnerable to being outpaced by climate change, and thus prone to disequilibrium. In this dissertation, I tested the degree to which North American trees are in equilibrium with their potential climatic ranges using the ‘range filling’ metric, which …

Direct And Indirect Effects Of Climate On Bird Abundance Along Elevation Gradients In The Northern Appalachians, Timothy Duclos

Masters Theses

The stratification of bird species along elevational gradients is widely reported, with montane bird communities typically characterized by distinctive species occurring in relatively small and isolated populations; as such, these species are the subject of considerable interest to ecologists and conservationists. The stratification of species along elevation is largely attributed to compressed climatic zonation. Recent evidence that bird species are shifting up in elevation has fueled speculation that these species are tracking their climactic niches in response to climate change. However, there is also evidence plant communities are shifting in elevation, presenting a potential additional mechanism explaining changes observed in …

Interactive Effects Of Flow Regime, Climate Change, And Angler Harvest On Smallmouth Bass At The Southern Range Extent, Christopher Middaugh

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The Ozark-Ouachita Interior Highlands of Arkansas, Oklahoma, and Missouri are the southern extent of native Smallmouth Bass Micropterus dolomieu range. Smallmouth Bass are an important species economically and ecologically, but it is unknown how climate change may affect them in this region and in particular how Smallmouth Bass may be affected differently across streams from various flow regimes. Here I present three projects investigating how climate change, flow regime, and angler harvest may interact to affect Smallmouth Bass over the coming century. I first modeled present and future water temperatures and calculated growth rate potential for Smallmouth Bass from streams …

Flight Of The Freshwater Fish, Michael H. Wilson

Capstones

Michael H. Wilson

Capstone Abstract

December 27, 2016

Flight of the Freshwater Fish

The Hudson River provides for millions of people as a path for commercial and private transportation, a source of food and energy, and perhaps most importantly for many living in the tri-state area as a destination for recreation and relaxation. The most overlooked feature of the river is how the wildlife shows clear signs of a changing climate and rapid environmental response to the impacts of global warming on the river.

Entire populations of fish species in the lower Hudson have been forced to leave the river …

Synthesis Of Satellite Microwave Observations For Monitoring Global Land-Atmosphere Co2 Exchange, Lucas Alan Jones

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

This dissertation describes the estimation, error quantification, and incorporation of land surface information from microwave satellite remote sensing for modeling global ecosystem land-atmosphere net CO₂ exchange. Retrieval algorithms were developed for estimating soil moisture, surface water, surface temperature, and vegetation phenology from microwave imagery timeseries. Soil moisture retrievals were merged with model-based soil moisture estimates and incorporated into a light-use efficiency model for vegetation productivity coupled to a soil decomposition model. Results, including state and uncertainty estimates, were evaluated with a global eddy covariance flux tower network and other independent global model- and remote-sensing based products.

Turning Up The Heat On The Little Things That Run The World: Evaluating The Impacts Of Climate Change On Ant Biodiversity In The Temperate Forest Communities Of The Northeastern United States, Israel Del Toro

Doctoral Dissertations

Climatic change threatens biodiversity worldwide. In the forests of the northeastern United States, climate change is expected to increase mean annual temperatures by up to 4.5˚C and change precipitation seasonality. These changes in climate are likely to have impacts on the biodiversity of the region. In order to better understand the impacts of climate change on biodiversity, I used ants, an indicator taxonomic group, to predict how ant communities and ant-mediated ecosystem processes change as the climate warms. In the first chapter of this dissertation, I review the major ecosystem processes and services mediated by ants using the Millennium Ecosystem …

Applying The Principles Of Spatial Modelling To The Management Of Biodiversity In The Fragmented Landscapes Of South-Western Australia, Shaun Molloy

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Biodiversity conservation throughout the world is challenged by the impacts of a changing climate on fragmented landscapes. To mitigate these threats, conservation managers require models which can demonstrate the consequences of both negative impacts and management actions. This need can be addressed through spatial modelling applications. Unfortunately, throughout much of the world, spatial modelling is forgone, being seen as requiring skills and resources beyond the means of many conservation planners and managers. This thesis seeks to address this dilemma by delivering criteria for a successful modelling application and by providing case studies which demonstrate how appropriate modelling can be undertaken …