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Articles 1 - 5 of 5
Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
A Sky Island Perspective: New England Alpine Plant Distributions Across The Region, Andrea Tirrell
A Sky Island Perspective: New England Alpine Plant Distributions Across The Region, Andrea Tirrell
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Alpine ecosystems around the globe are at risk due to climate change, human disturbance, and habitat loss. New England alpine zones are small and fragmented, which could make them vulnerable to global change. However, the persistence of tundra relics throughout the Holocene suggests the persistence of these communities in microclimate refugia. Assessing the near-term vulnerability of alpine plant communities is challenged by a lack of standardized, repeat surveys and long-term monitoring data, which presents a challenge for the many agencies monitoring New England’s alpine zones. Island biogeography theory predicts that alpine species richness is a function of area, but this …
Modeling Life History And Population Dynamics Of American Lobster And Atlantic Sea Scallops In A Warming Gulf Of Maine, Cameron T. Hodgdon
Modeling Life History And Population Dynamics Of American Lobster And Atlantic Sea Scallops In A Warming Gulf Of Maine, Cameron T. Hodgdon
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Climate change is impacting many marine species distributions, life histories, and behaviors, as well as their associated fisheries and overall production. This is perhaps especially true for the Gulf of Maine (GOM). Here, warming rates are exceeding a vast majority of the world’s oceans. This highly dynamic system supports myriad species, but is both economically recognized and culturally known for its Atlantic sea scallop (Placopecten magellanicus) and American lobster (Homarus americanus) fisheries. This dissertation examines the influence of regional climate change on these species in an effort to predict how these stocks and their fisheries may …
Assessment Of Historical Climate Variability In Maine With Implications For Future Agricultural Productivity And Adaptation, Carly Frank
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Climate change is a wicked problem with global impacts, one of which being the sustainability of the existing global food system. As temperatures and variability in precipitation are projected to increase, the challenges to agriculture are expected to intensify. This thesis examines the Maine historical climate record over the growing season, in combination with future projections, to assess how conditions have changed and will change with agricultural implications. In this analysis, relevant climatic variables are analyzed, and agriculture-significant measures are derived for Maine’s three climate divisions using four decades of daily and monthly gridded datasets. In addition, this thesis explores …
Responses Of Arthropods To Fire And How Pollinators And Pollination Services Are Affected By Fire Severity, Blyssalyn V. Bieber
Responses Of Arthropods To Fire And How Pollinators And Pollination Services Are Affected By Fire Severity, Blyssalyn V. Bieber
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
Fires impact ecosystems globally and due to climate change, there are shifts in fire regimes that impact ecological communities which provide essential ecosystem services. Focusing on arthropods, fire can influence this ubiquitous animal group in various way. We performed a comprehensive meta-analysis evaluating how fires impact differing arthropod functional groups. We found that overall, fire negatively effects community level responses for most functional groups with herbivores as the only exception showing some positive effects of fire. We also studied mixed-severity fires that burned >20 years ago and compared floral visitor communities across fire severities. We implemented a pollinator exclusion experiment …
Investigating The Effect Of A Facultative Symbiont, Hamiltonella Defensa, On Pea Aphid, Acyrthosiphon Pisum, Fecundity And Behavior In Elevated Co₂ Atmospheres, Tyler J. Follman
Investigating The Effect Of A Facultative Symbiont, Hamiltonella Defensa, On Pea Aphid, Acyrthosiphon Pisum, Fecundity And Behavior In Elevated Co₂ Atmospheres, Tyler J. Follman
Electronic Theses and Dissertations
As atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) levels continue to rise, it is important to study how economically important organisms, like the pea aphid, Acyrthosiphon pisum, will react to these conditions. The pea aphid feeds on the phloem of crop plants like alfalfa, peas, and fava beans, where it not only directly harms the plant but also can spread plant viruses. A wide variety of factors can influence pea aphid fecundity and behavior. Some of these factors are abiotic, like atmospheric conditions, and some are biotic, like microorganisms with which the pea aphid has a mutualistic relationship. In this thesis, …