Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Drought Affects Sex Ratio And Growth Of Painted Turtles In A Long-Term Study In Nebraska, Larkin A. Powell, Ellen P. Dolph, Charrissa R. Neil

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Climate forecasts suggest the Great Plains of North America have increased risk of droughts during global warming. Environmental factors have potential to influence turtle populations in aquatic habitats through temperature-dependent sex determination and influences on food availability. Long-term studies are critical to evaluate the influence of climatic variation on turtles. We used a 12-year set of mark-recapture data collected from painted turtles (Chrysemys picta, n = 162) in a pond in Keith County, Nebraska during 2005–2016 to assess variation in sex ratio and growth dynamics. Southwest Nebraska experienced two periods of drought during our study (Palmer Hydrologic Drought …

Drought Affects Sex Ratio And Growth Of Painted Turtles In A Long-Term Study In Nebraska, Larkin Powell, Ellen Dolph, Charrissa R. Neil

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Climate forecasts suggest the Great Plains of North America have increased risk of droughts during global warming. Environmental factors have potential to influence turtle populations in aquatic habitats through temperature-dependent sex determination and influences on food availability. Long-term studies are critical to evaluate the influence of climatic variation on turtles. We used a 12-year set of mark-recapture data collected from painted turtles (Chrysemys picta, n = 162) in a pond in Keith County, Nebraska during 2005–2016 to assess variation in sex ratio and growth dynamics. Southwest Nebraska experienced two periods of drought during our study (Palmer Hydrologic Drought Index [PHDI] …

Joint Effects Of Climate, Tree Size, And Year On Annual Tree Growth Derived From Tree-Ring Records Of Ten Globally Distributed Forests, K.J. Anderson-Teixeira, V. Hermann, C.R. Rollinson, B. Gonzalez, E.B. Gonzalez-Akre, N. Pederson, M.R. Alexander, C.D. Allen, R. Alfaro-Sanchez, T. Awada, J.L. Baltzer, P. J. Baker, J. D. Birch, S. Bunyavejchewin, P. Cherubini, S. J. Davies, C. Dow, R. Helcoski, J. Kaspar, J. A. Lutz, E. Q. Margolis, J. T. Maxwell, S. M. Mcmahon, C. Piponiot, S. E. Russo, P. Samonil, A. E. Sniderhan, A. J. Tepley, I. Vasickova, M Vlam, P. A. Zuidema

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Effects Of Climate And Irrigation On Grace-Based Estimates Of Water Storage Changes In Major Us Aquifers, B. R. Scanlon, A. Rateb, D. R. Pool, W. Sanford, H. Save, A. Sun, D. Long, B. A. Fuchs

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Resilience Through Climate Services, A.M.S. Ibarra, C. Hewitt, Y. T. Winarto, S. Walker, V. W. Keener, J. Bayala, I. Christel, H. Bloomfield, K. Halsnaes, T. Haigh, D. Jacob, G. P. Brasseur, B. Van Den Hurk

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Long-Term Analysis Of The Asynchronicity Between Temperature And Precipitation Maxima In The United States Great Plains, Paul Flanagan, Jeffrey B. Basara, Xiangming Xiao

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Agriculture is a critical industry to the economy of the Great Plains (GP) region of North America and sensitive to change in weather and climate. Thus, improved knowledge of meteorological and climatological conditions during the growing season and associated variability across spatial and temporal scales is important. A distinct climate feature in the GP is the asynchronicity (AS) between the timing of temperature and precipitation maxima. This study investigated a long-term observational data set to quantify the AS and to address the impacts of climate variability and change. Global Historical Climate Network Daily (GHCN-Daily) data were utilized for this study; …

Fluctuating Viability Selection On Morphology Of Cliff Swallows Is Driven By Climate, Charles R. Brown, Mary Bomberger Brown, Erin A. Roche

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

The extent to which fluctuating selection can maintain evolutionary stasis in most populations remains an unresolved question in evolutionary biology. Climate has been hypothesized to drive reversals in the direction of selection among different time periods and may also be responsible for intense episodic selection caused by rare weather events. We measured viability selection associated with morphological traits in cliff swallows (Petrochelidon pyrrhonota) in western Nebraska, USA, over a 14-year period following a rare climatic event. We used mark-recapture to estimate the annual apparent survival of over 26 000 individuals whose wing, tail, tarsus, and bill had been …

Farmer Perceptions Of Sustainable Agriculture Practices And Drought Risk Reduction In Nebraska, Usa, Cody L. Knutson, Tonya Haigh, Michael J. Hayes, Melissa Widhalm, J. Nothwehr, M. Kleinschmidt, L. Graf

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Social factors, such as farming methods, have an impact on farm vulnerability to drought, but have received little research or policy attention. Some researchers and advocates have argued that sustainable agriculture systems are less vulnerable to climate risk than conventional systems because sustainable agriculture requires producers to have skills promoting adaptability. In this paper, we investigate producers’ perceptions on the use of sustainable agriculture in reducing drought risk, and what they believe would help them better adapt to drought. We surveyed and interviewed farmer members of two sustainable agriculture organizations in Nebraska, USA, during a multi-year drought period from 1999 …

Land Use/Land Cover Changes And Climate: Modeling Analysis And Observational Evidence, Roger A. Pielke Sr., Andy Pitman, Dev Niyogi, Rezaul Mahmood, Clive Mcalpine, Faisal Hossain, Kees Klein Goldewijk, Udaysankar S. Nair, Richard Betts, Souleymane Fall, Markus Reichstein, Pavel Kabat, Nathalie De Noblet

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

This article summarizes the changes in landscape structure because of human land management over the last several centuries, and using observed and modeled data, documents how these changes have altered biogeophysical and biogeochemical surface fluxes on the local, mesoscale, and regional scales. Remaining research issues are presented including whether these landscape changes alter large-scale atmospheric circulation patterns far from where the land use and land cover changes occur. We conclude that existing climate assessments have not yet adequately factored in this climate forcing. For those regions that have undergone intensive human landscape change, or would undergo intensive change in the …

Introduction To The Basic Drivers Of Climate, Alison P. Stevens

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Climates on Earth vary from the warm, wet tropics to the cold, dry Arctic and Antarctic. What drives this variation?

Every day, we note the weather: temperature, rain, cloud cover, wind and humidity. Climate is the long-term prevailing weather in an area and is largely determined by temperature and precipitation. The climate in a desert is hot and dry. The climate in the tropics is warm and wet. The climate of a particular area is the largest determinant to the life found there. Climate is a key focus in ecology. Variations in climate include daily and seasonal cycles. Climatic variation …

A Century Of Climate Change For Fairbanks, Alaska, Gerd Wendler, Martha Shulski

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Climatological observations are available for Fairbanks, Interior Alaska, for up to 100 years. This is a unique data set for Alaska, insofar as it is of relatively high quality and without major breaks. Applying the best linear fit, we conclude that the mean annual temperature rose from -3.6°C to -2.2°C over the century, an increase of 1.4°C (compared to 0.8°C worldwide). This comparison clearly demonstrates the well-known amplification or temperature change for the polar regions. The observed temperature increase is neither uniform over the time period nor uniform throughout the course of a year. The winter, spring, and summer seasons …

Shelterbelts: A Buffer To Climate On The Plains, James R. Brandle

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

A Demonstration And Evaluation Of The Use Of Climate Information To Support Irrigation Scheduling And Other Agricultural Operations (Camac Progress Report 87-4), K. G. Hubbard, D. A. Wilhite, S. J. Meyer, J. Booysen, R. Sagar, J. J. Schmidt, J. R. Hines

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Agroclimatic Calendar For Nebraska, R. E. Neild

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Crops are planted so growth, development and harvest correspond closely to the season most favorable for yield and quality. With exception of fall-seeded small grains and some forages, most Nebraska crops are planted in the spring when temperature and precipitation are increasing.