Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
- Discipline
Articles 1 - 3 of 3
Full-Text Articles in Biology
Applications Of Side Scan And Parametric Echosounders For Mapping Shallow Seagrass Habitats And Their Associated Organic Carbon, Austin L. Greene
Applications Of Side Scan And Parametric Echosounders For Mapping Shallow Seagrass Habitats And Their Associated Organic Carbon, Austin L. Greene
Theses and Dissertations
Despite a global valuation of $1.9 trillion seagrass habitats world-wide are in decline—directly impacting the large soil carbon stocks associated with seagrasses. Many methods exist to measure the health of seagrass habitats, yet few apply to shallow coastal ecosystems. Those that do lack spatial resolution (satellite surveys) or do not provide continuous data across large areas (point-based surveys). Furthermore, carbon content of these ecosystems is largely limited to destructive and time-consuming soil core sampling. Side scan and parametric acoustics represent a unique technological opportunity to study habitat coverage and carbon content of vegetated coastal habitats (< 3 m depth). This study presents proof of concept for applications of recreational side scan and parametric sub-bottom profiling sonars in mapping both habitat coverage and organic carbon distribution in shallow seagrass habitats, and explores how these methods might be improved in future applications.
Decomposition And Nitrogen Dynamics Of Turtle Grass (Thalassia Testudinum) In A Subtropical Estuarine System, Monica Delgado
Decomposition And Nitrogen Dynamics Of Turtle Grass (Thalassia Testudinum) In A Subtropical Estuarine System, Monica Delgado
Theses and Dissertations
Seagrass beds are pivotal in the functioning of coastal ecosystems in terms of productivity, organic matter turnover and nutrient cycling. Aiming to document decay and nitrogen (N) dynamics of turtle grass (Thalassia testudinum) in a subtropical estuarine system, decomposition patterns of leaves and rhizomes were characterized and compared. Nitrogen usage during decomposition of tissues, and of live tissues and epiphytes growing on live leaves, was also quantified and compared. Stable isotope ratios allowed tracing N within the seagrass bed, following N incorporation into seagrass tissues from the surrounding media (water, sediment). Leaves had a higher N content and decomposed at …
A Survey Of Heavy Metals In Water, Soil And The Surrounding Plants In The Lower Rio Grande Valley, Erving W. Morelius
A Survey Of Heavy Metals In Water, Soil And The Surrounding Plants In The Lower Rio Grande Valley, Erving W. Morelius
Theses and Dissertations - UTB/UTPA
Heavy metal pollution of the environment in recent years has become a major issue of importance for both human and environmental health. Samples were investigated for the potential pollution of the area as it is a vital produce producing area. During the study plant, soil and water samples were collected from the Donna Reservoir and Canal System to test the concentration of various heavy metals. The heavy metals tested included both potentially toxic and micronutrients in the samples which included arsenic, cadmium, chromium, copper, iron, lead, nickel and sulfur. During the study, a sixty day sampling period was used to …