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Effects Of Dissimilar Silvicultural Techniques On Small Mammal Communities In Michigan's Upper Peninsula, Breanna R. Gusick Jan 2022

Effects Of Dissimilar Silvicultural Techniques On Small Mammal Communities In Michigan's Upper Peninsula, Breanna R. Gusick

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

Small mammal populations, and predators reliant upon them as food resources, are often challenged by conflicting objectives of timber production and maintenance of quality habitat. With over 70% of the landscape forested, and nearly one-third of the land privately owned, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula (UP) is a matrix of independent management strategies. To assess the effects of various silvicultural regeneration methods on small mammal populations in the Upper Peninsula, we trapped small mammals in experimental silviculture plots, whereby treatments varied by regeneration method (amount of residual canopy cover) and site preparation (i.e., control, tip-up, and scarification), and deer exclosures. We used …


Display Site Selection By Male Ruffed Grouse In The Upper Great Lakes Region, Seth Finkel Jan 2022

Display Site Selection By Male Ruffed Grouse In The Upper Great Lakes Region, Seth Finkel

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

The Ruffed Grouse (Bonasa umbellus) is widely known for its characteristic territorial drumming display. In this study, I used ruffed grouse drumming survey data from Minnesota and Michigan, in a series of mixed logistic models, to identify drivers of drumming log selection by reproductive male ruffed grouse. I collected drumming stage data utilizing a paired-random sampling structure. I used information theoretic model selection to examine three sets of a priori mixed logistic models: one for the entirety of my Minnesota dataset, one consisting of stages identified in aspen stands in Minnesota, and one for my Michigan dataset. In …


Effects Of Infanticide Risk And Timber Harvest On American Black Bear Space Use, D. Cody Norton Dec 2019

Effects Of Infanticide Risk And Timber Harvest On American Black Bear Space Use, D. Cody Norton

All NMU Master's Theses

Space use is an important aspect of bear ecology that maybe influenced by infanticide risk and timber harvest. I used generalized linear mixed models (GLMM) to determine if female American black bear (Ursus americanus) space use was consistent with avoidance behavior to reduce infanticide risk in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan during the 2009–2011 and 2013–2014 breeding seasons. Females with cubs occupied core areas and home ranges of similar size and relative probability of male use to females without cubs. Additionally, females with cubs did not reduce movements during times of day when male movements were greatest. Female …


Intraspecific Differences In Belowground Associations And Seedling Root Morphology For The Biofuel Crop, Panicum Virgatum., Erin Renee Kinnetz May 2017

Intraspecific Differences In Belowground Associations And Seedling Root Morphology For The Biofuel Crop, Panicum Virgatum., Erin Renee Kinnetz

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The perennial C4 grass Panicum virgatum (switchgrass) is a promising bioenergy feedstock. Switchgrass is symbiotic with arbuscular mycorrhizal fungi (AMF). I examined 12 varieties of switchgrass grouped into 2 ecotypes (upland, lowland) to see if they differed in AMF abundance and root colonization using the GLBRC Variety Trials experiment. There was higher root colonization of lowland ecotype. A greenhouse experiment evaluated the role of live soil organisms in seedling establishment of 11 varieties. Live soil increased seedling survival, growth and influenced root morphology. Ecotypes differed in root architecture. Lowland developed a higher specific root length (SRL), a trait associated …


Assessing The Impacts Of Climate Change On The Surface Temperature Of Inland Lakes In Michigan, Kaitlin Reinl Jan 2016

Assessing The Impacts Of Climate Change On The Surface Temperature Of Inland Lakes In Michigan, Kaitlin Reinl

Dissertations, Master's Theses and Master's Reports

The aim of this study was to validate and apply a lake model for predicting the susceptibility of small inland lakes in Michigan to changes in thermal regime and increased cyanobacteria growth as a result of future climate conditions. The Freshwater Lake Model was selected, tested for sensitivity to various inputs, and validated through comparison to observed conditions. The sensitivity analysis showed that the lake model was most sensitive to solar radiation, air temperature, and air humidity. Comparison of predicted climate data with observed conditions revealed highly variable climate model error. The lake model validation was conducted using 10 lakes …