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Fort Hays State University

Master's Theses

Cheyenne Bottoms

Publication Year

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences

Spatial Ecology Of The Western Massasauga (Sisturus Tergeminus) In A Large Interior Wetland, Joshua Mead May 2018

Spatial Ecology Of The Western Massasauga (Sisturus Tergeminus) In A Large Interior Wetland, Joshua Mead

Master's Theses

Insight into the spatial ecology of a population of animals provides information valuable to the management and conservation of a species. Reptiles are facing global declines, with 1 in 5 species currently threatened with extinction. For cryptic taxa such as snakes, radio-telemetry allows for individuals to be reliably located on a consistent basis. I used radio-telemetry to investigate the spatial ecology of the Western Massasauga (Sistrurus tergeminus) at Cheyenne Bottoms in Barton County, Kansas. Eighteen individuals (12 male and 6 female) were implanted with very high frequency (VHF) radio transmitters during 2016-2017 and tracked twice weekly from July to November …


Comparison Of Small Mammal Communities In Ephemeral Wetlands And Wet Meadows During Drought, Brian M. Zinke May 2014

Comparison Of Small Mammal Communities In Ephemeral Wetlands And Wet Meadows During Drought, Brian M. Zinke

Master's Theses

Ephemeral wetlands are characterized by a cyclical hydropattern, ranging from complete inundation to a total absence of surface water. This cycle between wet and dry phases is necessary for the flora of ephemeral wetlands to perpetuate. However, little research has been done to study the response of the non-avian fauna to these cycles, particularly during the dry phase. I live trapped small mammals by using Sherman live traps and conducted vegetation surveys monthly (May–August in 2012 and May–July in 2013) in the ephemeral wetlands and the surrounding wet meadows of the Cheyenne Bottoms basin in central Kansas. Drought occurred both …