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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Siltation Related To Beaver Dam Decomposition In The Little Kankakee River, Mckenzie Kelly, Chris Bitcheno, Alyssa Thacker, Jon Gardow, Arissa Wallis
Siltation Related To Beaver Dam Decomposition In The Little Kankakee River, Mckenzie Kelly, Chris Bitcheno, Alyssa Thacker, Jon Gardow, Arissa Wallis
Symposium on Undergraduate Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE)
The Little Kankakee River (LKR) in LaPorte County, Indiana is an uncommon example of a good, cold-water fishery in northwest Indiana. However, the river has variable sedimentation levels; deep silt often covers gravel and sand, smothering invertebrates, a key food source for higher trophic organisms. The LKR contains a naturally-decomposing, abandoned beaver dam. The purpose of this study is to monitor its impact upon upstream and downstream silt levels. This research intends to identify possible sources of variability in silt levels, benefiting restoration teams in determining effects of dam removals. Furthermore, understanding the impact and pattern of silt levels could …
Testing The Potential Of Using Fungi To Convert Human Waste Into Protein, Alex Zapata, Elizabeth Phillippi, Blair Mitchell, Jon Schoer, Michael Watters
Testing The Potential Of Using Fungi To Convert Human Waste Into Protein, Alex Zapata, Elizabeth Phillippi, Blair Mitchell, Jon Schoer, Michael Watters
Symposium on Undergraduate Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE)
We report on the results of a pilot experiment designed to test the potential of filamentous fungi (mold) to reduce solid waste (feces) while converting it into a consumable, high protein food product. Feces represent an untapped resource. Filamentous fungi are natural decomposers with the ability to use this resource. Many filamentous fungi are safe to eat. We examined growth in order to determine the conditions which maximized the rate of conversion of solid waste into fungal biomass. For this pilot, we compared the effect of different lengths of incubation, different methods of aeration, and different available surface area. The …
Impacts Of The Species Elaeagnus Umbellate On The Soil And Water Quality Of The Pierce Cedar Creek Institute Ecosystem, Yacoub Aljobeh, Kristin Engerer
Impacts Of The Species Elaeagnus Umbellate On The Soil And Water Quality Of The Pierce Cedar Creek Institute Ecosystem, Yacoub Aljobeh, Kristin Engerer
Symposium on Undergraduate Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE)
The species Elaeagnus umbellate, more commonly known as autumn olive, is a shrub that is invasive to the United States and indigenous to East Asia. Even though the autumn olive is not native to North America, it was able to thrive and adapt to the new environment by using its ability to fix nitrogen. Nitrogen-fixing is a process where plants intake molecular nitrogen from the atmosphere and convert it into other forms of nitrogen that can be used by the plants. One of the nitrogen-fixing by-products is nitrate. Excessive amounts of nitrate can easily leach from the plant’s root …
National Park Service Nonnative Plant Control In The Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, Jacob Halpin, Laurie Eberhardt, Laura Thompson
National Park Service Nonnative Plant Control In The Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore, Jacob Halpin, Laurie Eberhardt, Laura Thompson
Symposium on Undergraduate Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE)
Invasive plants have become a growing threat to plant diversity and hydrology in the Indiana Dunes National Lakeshore. Invasive plants compete with native plants for nutrients and sunlight, and certain invasive species have been known to completely take over certain areas of wetlands, nearly destroying entire ecosystems. The Dunes Lakeshore contains over 1,400 plants species and is one of the top ten most diverse national parks in the United States. The mission statement of the National Park Service is to “preserve for the educational, inspirational, and recreational use of the public certain portions of the Indiana Dunes.” In order …
Testing The Potential Of Using Fungi To Convert Human Waste Into Protein, Alex Zapata, Elizabeth Phillippi, Blair Mitchell, Jon Schoer, Michael K. Watters
Testing The Potential Of Using Fungi To Convert Human Waste Into Protein, Alex Zapata, Elizabeth Phillippi, Blair Mitchell, Jon Schoer, Michael K. Watters
Biology Faculty Presentations
We report on the results of a pilot experiment designed to test the potential of filamentous fungi (mold) to reduce solid waste (feces) while converting it into a consumable, high protein food product. Feces represent an untapped resource. Filamentous fungi are natural decomposers with the ability to use this resource. Many filamentous fungi are safe to eat. We examined growth in order to determine the conditions which maximized the rate of conversion of solid waste into fungal biomass. For this pilot, we compared the effect of different lengths of incubation, different methods of aeration, and different available surface area. The …
Improving Ecological Monitoring Of Restoration Sites In Northwest Indiana Through A Glisten-Nirmi Partnership., Danyi Harper, Don Meola
Improving Ecological Monitoring Of Restoration Sites In Northwest Indiana Through A Glisten-Nirmi Partnership., Danyi Harper, Don Meola
Symposium on Undergraduate Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE)
Northwest Indiana is an area of active ecological restoration with 169 documented restoration projects. However, the ability to assess the success of restoration projects is incomplete because monitoring of the progress of these restorations does not exist. NIRMI was created in 2010 to establish a system of evaluating and quantifying plant species in local habitat restoration projects throughout Northwest Indiana. NIRMI uses a standardized approach to collect data that is placed within an open-access database for use by other researchers, restoration groups, and individuals in evaluation of restoration efforts. Data collection uses the CVS-EEP protocol for recording vegetation, a standard …
Deer Browse Monitoring Of The Lupine Population At John Merle Coulter Prairie And The Trillium Population At Hildebrand Lake, Jana C. Cram, Heather Dulaney
Deer Browse Monitoring Of The Lupine Population At John Merle Coulter Prairie And The Trillium Population At Hildebrand Lake, Jana C. Cram, Heather Dulaney
Symposium on Undergraduate Research and Creative Expression (SOURCE)
A facet of ecological restoration practices in northwest Indiana involves monitoring and supporting the growth of various plants native to the region, including wild lupine (Lupinus perennis) and large-flowering trillium (Trillium grandiflorum). White-tailed deer are a common threat to these species because they eat, or browse, the flowers from these plants. This project investigated the amount of wild lupine and large-flowering trillium browsed by white-tailed deer at Coulter Prairie and Hildebrand Lake, respectively, over a four-year period. Plant counts are taken from permanent transect lines of 30 and 50 meters in length and measured in one …