Life Sciences Commons^™

A Look Into Millstone Nuclear Power Plant: Attitudes On Sustainability And Prevalence Of Epizootic Shell Disease, Emily Craig

Honors College

Epizootic Shell Disease in Homarus americanus

American lobster populations along the northeastern U.S. coast have been experiencing increased prevalence of Epizootic Shell Disease (ESD) over the past two decades. Several reports have correlated this increase with warmer water temperatures. My thesis examined the distribution of diseased lobsters surrounding Millstone Nuclear Power Station (MPS) in Long Island Sound. Lobsters in this area have seen a rise in Epizootic Shell Disease (ESD) that parallels the broader trends. To determine if the thermal plume from MPS had a local effect on ESD prevalence, the spatial distribution of diseased lobsters was analyzed at three …

Twenty-Five Years Of Change In Spruce Grouse Occupancy At Their Southern Range Margin In Maine, Usa, Christopher J. Gilbert

Honors College

Species at their southern range margin are often dispersed throughout fragmented populations where they experience less optimum conditions compared to their central range. Spruce Grouse (Falcipennis canadensis) are boreal forest obligates distributed throughout the Northern United States and Canada and reach their southeastern range extent in Maine. I resurveyed 18 Black Spruce (Picea mariana) – Tamarack (Larix laricina) stands on Mount Desert Island, Maine, to observe changes in Spruce Grouse occupancy and abundance between the early 1990s (Whitcomb et al. 1996) and present day. I conducted two rounds of call back surveys within each …

Assessing The Impacts Of Commercial Clearcut On Freshwater Invertebrate Communities, Nicholas J. Kovalik

Honors College

Forest harvesting can impact the environment in many ways, one of which is causing a loss of subsidies and increased light intensity to freshwater ecosystems. This can have a major impact on freshwater invertebrate communities that may rely on subsidies to survive. In this study, I tested two effects of commercial clearcut, changes in light availability and detrital resources, on freshwater invertebrate communities. Cattle tanks containing freshwater invertebrates were given detritus from two different plots: one which underwent commercial clearcut over 50 years ago, and one which underwent commercial clearcut 2 years ago. Tanks were also placed in two areas …

Construction Of An Accessible Ocean-Acidification Simulator To Investigate Physiological Responses Of The Green Crab, Carcinus Maenas, To Acidified Conditions, Caroline M. Spangenberg

Honors College

The European green crab Carcinus maenas L, is a major invasive species in North America as well as many other regions around the world, including South Africa, Australia, South America, and Asia. The species poses a significant threat to the diverse ecosystems and the aquaculture industries on the East coast of the United States, with the state of Maine particularly at risk. The shellfish industry is a significant part of Maine’s economy, and is threatened by the foraging behavior of green crabs toward small bivalves (Beal 2015). Climate change likely plays a large role in the rapid population growth of …

Estimating Ecosystem Services From Harvested And Unharvested Ascophyllum Nodosum On The Maine Coast, Ashley E. Sarra

Honors College

Ascophyllum nodosum, better known as rockweed, is a commercially important, harvested intertidal brown alga species common in coastal Maine. Rockweed sea vegetable harvesting is a lucrative wild harvest fishery, that has also proved to be socially contentious and whose future management is uncertain. A. nodosum is an intertidal macroalgal species that may also be impacted by sea level rise. Through a combination of biomass estimation, newspaper analysis, and interview data collection, this project seeks to (a) develop a typology of ecological services of A. nodosum in harvested and unharvested areas in the state of Maine; and (b) assess the …

Effect Of Primary Care Follow Up On Hospital Readmissions, Meredith Roderka

Honors College

Hospital readmission rates are costly; nearly 1 in 5 hospital patients covered by Medicare are readmitted to the hospital within 30 days of discharge, accounting for $15 billion a year in health care spending (Jencks et al., 2009). The emergency department (ED) is the biggest cost driver for hospital readmissions. The research conducted implemented new protocols with an ED-based research study team that came in at the time of the patient discharge and assist with the transition of care for the patient, scheduling next day follow-ups with their Primary Care Provider. Analysis of this data will include readmission rates for …

Does Drought Affect Reproduction In The Saltmarsh Sparrow (Ammodramus Caudacutus)?, Valerie K. Watson

Honors College

The Saltmarsh Sparrow (Ammodramus caudacutus) is experiencing steep population declines, with extinction likely within the next few decades. Sea-level rise has been identified as a major threat to the species, but little has been done to examine the effects of other aspects of climate change on Saltmarsh Sparrow populations. In this study, I examine whether drought affects reproductive success in the Saltmarsh Sparrow. I use nest- and chick-monitoring data collected over five years across the northern half of the species range to test whether drought conditions affect four metrics of reproductive success in these birds: hatch rate, clutch …

A Histological Assessment Of The Effects Of Elevated Temperature And Nitrogen On The Symbiodinium Of Palythoa Toxica (Walsh And Bowers 1971), Molly Westbrook

Honors College

Coral reefs around the world are suffering mass bleaching events caused by a combination of stressors, including rising ocean temperatures, acidity, pollution, increased suspended sediments, and increasing nitrogen levels. Corals harbor a complex microbial ecosystem consisting of bacteria, and algal symbionts known as Symbiodinium. This study examines the effects of elevated temperature, a known cause of bleaching, and elevated nitrogen, an increasingly important potential stressor for reefs, on the Symbiodinium of a zoanthid coral, Palythoa toxica. A total of 65 polyps were subjected to 5 different water treatments of 2 levels of elevated nitrogen, and 2 levels of …

Temporal And Spatial Variability Of Oxygen Levels In Upwelled Waters Along The Southern California Coast, Todd Xavier Thoman

Honors College

The overall goal of this study is to quantify interannual trends in oxygen concentrations and their spatial variability in the coastal Pacific Ocean off the southern coast of California, and to examine their relationship to concurrent hydrographic properties. The study focuses on trends within the upper 500 meters of the water column to indicate changes in seasonally upwelled waters over time. The analysis uses the publicly-available CalCOFI bottle cast data gathered and distributed by Scripps Institute. At each station, data include oxygen concentration and hydrographic information, such as potential density, depth, temperature, and salinity. This study utilizes data from 30.35° …

Environmental Impacts On Loggerhead Sea Turtle Nesting On Edisto Island, South Carolina, Faythe J. Goins

Honors College

The Northwest Atlantic population of loggerhead sea turtles (Caretta caretta), listed as threatened on the US Endangered Species List, may be susceptible to climatic changes and monthly variation due to their slow generation time, temperature dependent sex determination, natal homing, and anthropogenic impacts. In order to investigate how environmental conditions impact loggerhead sea turtles, we compared sea turtle nesting data collected on three distinct and unique beaches on Edisto Island, South Carolina (Edisto Beach State Park, Edisto Town Beach, Botany Bay Plantation) between 2009 and 2016 to environmental data downloaded from NASA Giovanni and NOAA. We found that …

Wildlife Use Of Vernal Pools In An Urbanizing Landscape With A Focus On Population Vitality Of Vernal Pool-Breeding Amphibians, Carly Eakin

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Vernal pools in the northeastern United States provide essential habitat for pool-breeding amphibians and provide resources for other forest-dwelling wildlife. These pools and pool-breeding amphibians in particular are threatened by land conversion associated with urbanization and urban-associated factors. The responses of these amphibians and of birds and mammals using vernal pools to intermediate levels of urban development are largely unknown. I used field observations and lab experiments to study the amphibians, birds, and mammals associated with vernal pools along an urban development gradient in greater Bangor, Maine.

In Chapter 1, I examined bird and mammal use and assemblage composition at …

Landings, Vol. 26, No. 4, Maine Lobstermen’S Community Alliance

Landings: News & Views from Maine's Lobstering Community

Landings content emphasizes science, history, resource sustainability, economic development, and human interest stories related to

Maine’s lobster industry. The newsletter emphasizes lobstering as a traditional, majority-European American lifeway with an economic and social heritage unique to the coast of Maine. The publication focuses how ongoing research to engage in sustainable, non-harmful, and non-wasteful commercial fishing practices benefit both the fishery and Maine's coastal legacy.

Maine Lobstermen’s Community Alliance (MLCA) started publication of Landings, a 24-page newsletter in January 2013 as the successor of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association (MLA) Newsletter. As of 2022, the MLCA published over 6,500 copies of …

The Dandy Scroll, Spring 2018, University Of Maine Pulp And Paper Foundation

General University of Maine Publications

The Spring 2018 issue of The Dandy Scroll newsletter produced by the University of Maine Pulp and Paper Foundation.

Landings, Vol. 26, No. 3, Maine Lobstermen’S Community Alliance

Landings: News & Views from Maine's Lobstering Community

Landings content emphasizes science, history, resource sustainability, economic development, and human interest stories related to

Maine’s lobster industry. The newsletter emphasizes lobstering as a traditional, majority-European American lifeway with an economic and social heritage unique to the coast of Maine. The publication focuses how ongoing research to engage in sustainable, non-harmful, and non-wasteful commercial fishing practices benefit both the fishery and Maine's coastal legacy.

Maine Lobstermen’s Community Alliance (MLCA) started publication of Landings, a 24-page newsletter in January 2013 as the successor of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association (MLA) Newsletter. As of 2022, the MLCA published over 6,500 copies of …

Landings, Vol. 26, No. 2, Maine Lobstermen’S Community Alliance

Landings: News & Views from Maine's Lobstering Community

Landings content emphasizes science, history, resource sustainability, economic development, and human interest stories related to

Maine’s lobster industry. The newsletter emphasizes lobstering as a traditional, majority-European American lifeway with an economic and social heritage unique to the coast of Maine. The publication focuses how ongoing research to engage in sustainable, non-harmful, and non-wasteful commercial fishing practices benefit both the fishery and Maine's coastal legacy.

Maine Lobstermen’s Community Alliance (MLCA) started publication of Landings, a 24-page newsletter in January 2013 as the successor of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association (MLA) Newsletter. As of 2022, the MLCA published over 6,500 copies of …

Maine Agricultural & Forest Experiment Station (University Of Maine) Records, 1888-1987, Special Collections, Raymond H. Fogler Library, University Of Maine

Finding Aids

In 1883, the Maine Board of Agriculture called for the establishment of a formal experiment station in Orono. With the support of state funds the Maine Fertilizer Control and Agricultural Experiment Station (later becoming the Maine Agricultural & Forest Experiment Station). Eventually the Station would expand its research into genetics and breeding, entomology, forestry, food, potatoes, blueberries, and dairy. Such studies have been funded by both state and federal agriculture grants.

The records mainly contain textual information created and curated by the University of Maine's Maine Agricultural & Forest Experiment Station. The record series Administrative Records includes: budget reports including …

Highlands (Matthew E.) Records, 1800s?-2003, Special Collections, Raymond H. Fogler Library, University Of Maine

Finding Aids

Matthew Edward Highlands was a pioneer in the food processing industry. He was born on June 19, 1905 in Huntington, Indiana, but would relocate to Maine and attend school in Berwick, Maine. Highlands attended the University of Maine and graduated in 1928 with a degree in bacteriology. In 1943, Highlands earned a master's degree in food technology from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

In 1936, Highlands was appointed an assistant professor in bacteriology and food technology at the University of Maine. Highlands would stay in this position until 1942 when he entered the U.S. Army's World War II efforts …

Eggert (Franklin P.) Records, 1959-1993, Special Collections, Raymond H. Fogler Library, University Of Maine

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Franklin Paul Eggert was born in 1920 in Buffalo, New York. He came to the University of Maine in 1949 as extension fruit specialist and head of the horticulture department of the Agricultural Experiment Station. He was dean of the Graduate School from 1963 to 1975. He retired from the University in 1986. Franklin Paul Eggert died age 83 on October 23, 2003.

The records include the various correspondence of Eggert related to his time as chairperson of the Department of Plant and Soil Sciences including regarding horticulture research both at the University of Maine and elsewhere, professional meetings and …

Maine Twin Party Papers, 1938-1976, Special Collections, Raymond H. Fogler Library, University Of Maine

Finding Aids

Welton P. Farrow was born in Tryon, Prince Edward Island, Canada, on December 10, 1898 with his twin brother, Harold J. Farrow. In 1938, after 18 years of living apart, they visited each other in Waterville, Maine, and at the request of a researcher named D. C. Rife from the University of Ohio, they invited pairs of twins to meet together in order to conduct research on the subjects of twins.

Collection, 1938-1976, consists of the papers of the Maine Twin Party organization. Includes correspondence, photographs, clippings, scrapbooks, and a film reel documenting their semi-annual parties celebrating twins, and their …

Raising The Backyard Pig In Maine, Donna Coffin

Cooperative Extension - Agriculture

So you’re thinking you might like to try raising your own bacon or pork chops. This fact sheet provides a general overview of what you need to know to care for a pig. It covers selecting and transporting, feeding, water, shelter, and other considerations. Armed with this knowledge, you can make an informed decision about whether this project is right for you.

Report On American Eel (Anguilla Rostrata) Mark Recapture Study: Year 1, Christopher D. Johnson

Maine Sea Grant Publications

In 2017, Sipayik Environmental Department staff conducted a abundance and distribution study, using a mark-recapture method study focusing on the American eel ( Anguillla rostrata ), a species of cultural importance to the Passamaquoddy. The study’s focus area, the Pennamaquan Watershed, spans from its northernmost extent in Pembroke, Maine, south to Charlotte, Maine.This was the first time since 2005 that the Passamaquoddy Tribe studied the American eel. The 2005 study observed preferred eel habitat and migration routes on the dam at little river located in Perry Maine, 7 miles east of the Pennamaquan Lake. It also served as a pilot …

Rearing Queen Honey Bees: A Bullet Journal, Marianna Mead

Sweet Spot

This bullet journal documents a summer research project focused on rearing queen honey bees in Maine. Containing time logs, checklists, timelines, and pictures, this annotated journal provides information on how to rear queen honey bees. It includes details on how to make a starter hive, the dangers of disease, the benefits of queen rearing and a grafting day checklist.

Strategies For Reducing Moisture Content In Forest Residues At The Harvest Site, Anil Raj Kizha, H-S Han, J. Paulson, A. Koirala

Forest Resources Faculty Scholarship

The moisture content (MC) of biomass derived from forest residues can pose a challenge to biomass utilization. It plays a significant role in determining the cost of transportation and subsequent market price. Additionally, emerging biomass conversion technologies, such as gasification, torrefaction, and briquetting, have very narrow specifications for the MC (e.g., <15%) in their feedstocks. The goal of this study was to develop strategies for reducing moisture content by evaluating different arrangement patterns of forest residues and its effect on MC reduction at the harvest site. The study compared four different arrangement patterns including criss-cross, teepees, traditional piling (processor piled), and scattered residues in three different timber harvest units in northern California. Two of the arrangement patterns (criss-cross and processor piled) were also covered with a plastic cover. Samples were collected from each treatment using a transect method and were recorded for 12 months. There was an overall drop of MC from 52% (freshly cut) to 12% between all arrangements over the study period. The cost of construction per pile, averaged $37, $41, and $48 for teepees, criss-cross, and processor piles, respectively. Even though, there was no significant difference in MC reduction between piles (except scattered), each pile arrangement of forest residues directly affected biomass feedstock operations, logistics, and costs.

Landings, Vol. 26, No. 1, Maine Lobstermen’S Community Alliance

Landings: News & Views from Maine's Lobstering Community

Landings content emphasizes science, history, resource sustainability, economic development, and human interest stories related to

Maine’s lobster industry. The newsletter emphasizes lobstering as a traditional, majority-European American lifeway with an economic and social heritage unique to the coast of Maine. The publication focuses how ongoing research to engage in sustainable, non-harmful, and non-wasteful commercial fishing practices benefit both the fishery and Maine's coastal legacy.

Maine Lobstermen’s Community Alliance (MLCA) started publication of Landings, a 24-page newsletter in January 2013 as the successor of the Maine Lobstermen’s Association (MLA) Newsletter. As of 2022, the MLCA published over 6,500 copies of …

School Of Forest Resources (University Of Maine) Records, 1904-1992, Special Collections, Raymond H. Fogler Library, University Of Maine

Finding Aids

The School of Forest Resources at the University of Maine began in 1903 as the Department of Forestry in the College of Agriculture to offer practical work in forestry, but also a liberal education.

In 1935 the Wildlife Curriculum and Research Unit were added. In 1958 the Department was renamed the School of Forestry and in 1967 the name was changed to the School of Forest Resources. The College of Forest Resources was established in 1982. In 1993 it became part of the College of Natural Resources, Forestry and Agriculture.

The records contain textual information created and curated by the …

Pusey And Jones Corporation Records, 1976-1986, Special Collections, Raymond H. Fogler Library, University Of Maine

Finding Aids

Pusey and Jones Corporation was a major shipbuilder and industrial equipment manufacturer located in Wilmington, Delaware. Shipbuilding was the primary focus from 1853 until the end of World War II. While manufacturing and fabrication of papermaking machinery was a part of the company from nearly the beginning, after World War II, the company closed the shipyard and converted the shipyard's facilities to manufacture papermaking machinery exclusively. The company closed in 1959.

Records pertain mainly to machinery for the pulp and paper business. Also included are papers related to Penntech, a corporation with which the donor was associated.

Coastal Maine Climate Futures Report, University Of Maine Climate Change Institute

General University of Maine Publications

Climate and weather exert a critical influence on the health of Maine’s people, ecosystems and economy. Across coastal communities, where fishing, forestry, tourism, and agriculture serve as the economic backbone, the changing climate poses near and long-term challenges. This report provides a basis for future planning by developing plausible climate scenarios for the next 20 years – the period 2020–2040. The plausible scenarios follow an examination of historical climate trends, climate–commodity connections, and sources of climate variability that affect Maine. This report was produced with generous support from the Russell Grinnell Memorial Trust.

College Of Life Sciences And Agriculture (University Of Maine) Records, 1914-1985, Special Collections, Raymond H. Fogler Library, University Of Maine

Finding Aids

In 1964, during the tenure of University of Maine President Lloyd Hartman Elliot the existing College of Agriculture was renamed the College of Life Sciences and Agriculture to reflect the developing program and staff orientation within the College. The objectives of the College were to provide high quality educational opportunities in the agricultural and life sciences and to contribute generally to the economic, social and cultural development of the state by means of basic applied research and various extension educational techniques to help groups and individuals better understand the need and action necessary for properly managing and developing Maine's resources: …

Pulp And Paper Foundation (University Of Maine) Records, 1914-1990, Special Collections, Raymond H. Fogler Library, University Of Maine

Finding Aids

The University of Maine began offering a pulp and paper in 1912-1913 under Dr. Ralph H. McKee making it the first program in the United States. In 1949, University of Maine pulp and paper alumni and paper company executives met with representatives from UMaine to discuss the need for more and better trained workers in the pulp and paper industry. The result of this meeting was the establishment in 1950 of the University of Maine Pulp & Paper Foundation.

The records include annual meeting minutes, bylaws, goals and missions, conference and event publicity material and programs, papers on the pulp …

Department Of Animal And Veterinary Sciences (University Of Maine) Records, 1921-1978, Special Collections, Raymond H. Fogler Library, University Of Maine

Finding Aids

The records mainly contain textual information created and curated by the University of Maine Department of Animal and Veterinary Sciences (also known as the Department of Bacteriology and Veterinary Sciences and Department of Bacteriology). The record series Disease Record Cards contains Pullorum disease records for various flocks of birds across Maine.