Digital Commons Network^™

Extraction Of Metazoan Meiofauna From Muddy Deep-Sea Samples: Operator And Taxon Effects On Efficiency, Melissa Rohal, David Thistle, Erin E. Easton

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

Deep-sea metazoan meiofaunal specimens are usually extracted from muddy samples by centrifugation in a fluid in which meiofauna tend to float and sediment particles tend to sink. Although the procedure is in common use, its efficiency has seldom been examined. The study reported here showed that well-trained operators extracted metazoan meiofauna with efficiencies that were different enough to be a concern in quantitative studies. Therefore, samples should be assigned to operators in a stratified-random manner. In the course of these studies, both operators also extracted individuals of the common nematode family Desmoscolecidae significantly less efficiently than other nematode families, a …

Remote Sensing And Spatial Metrics For Quantifying Seagrass Landscape Changes: A Study On The 2011 Indian River Lagoon Florida Seagrass Die-Off Event, René Dieter Baumstark

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Florida’s seagrasses are ecologically important marine environments which have suffered major degradation caused by increasing anthropogenic pressures. A 2011 seagrass die-off event caused by an algal bloom in the Florida Indian River Lagoon (IRL) was particularly severe with a majority of seagrass lost in areas such as the Banana River. An understanding of how this coastal marine environment changed is an important step toward better managing resources for conservation. Modern tools and methods provide new opportunities to study these changes at the landscape scale, a scale that informs on the larger more comprehensive state of a system. Classified satellite imagery …

Characterization Of Ambient Noise, Rachel C. Ramirez

Theses and Dissertations

An Air Force sponsor is interested in improving an acoustic detection model by providing better estimates on how to characterize the background noise of various environments. This would inform decision makers on the probability of acoustic detection of different systems of interest given different levels of noise. Data mining and statistical learning techniques are applied to a National Park Service acoustic summary data set to find overall trends over varying environments. Linear regression, conditional inference trees, and random forest techniques are discussed. Findings indicate only sixteen geospatial variables at different resolutions are necessary to characterize the first ten ⅓ octave …

Recovery Of Zooplankton Communities To Whole-Lake Disturbance, Brian Newton Mcgann

Dissertations and Theses

Community assembly following disturbance is a key process in determining the composition and function of the future community. However, replicated studies of community assembly at whole ecosystem scales are rare. Here is described a series of whole-lake experiments in which the recovery of zooplankton communities is tracked following an ecosystem-scale disturbance. Fourteen lakes in eastern Washington were chosen: seven lakes were treated with rotenone, while the remaining seven were reference. Each lake was monitored up to six months before and one to two years after the rotenone treatments. Zooplankton tows were taken monthly, at a shallow, intermediate, and deep site …

Evidence-Based Causal Chains For Linking Health, Development, And Conservation Actions, Jiangxiao Qiu, Edward Game, Heather Tallis, Lydia Olander, Louise Glew, James S. Kagan, Multiple Additional Authors

Institute for Natural Resources Publications

Sustainability challenges for nature and people are complex and interconnected, such that effective solutions require approaches and a common theory of change that bridge disparate disciplines and sectors. Causal chains offer promising approaches to achieving an integrated understanding of how actions affect ecosystems, the goods and services they provide, and ultimately, human well-being. Although causal chains and their variants are common tools across disciplines, their use remains highly inconsistent, limiting their ability to support and create a shared evidence base for joint actions. In this article, we present the foundational concepts and guidance of causal chains linking disciplines and sectors …

Present And Future Thermal Environments Available To Sharp-Tailed Grouse In An Intact Grassland, Edward J. Raynor, Larkin Powell, Walter H. Schacht

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Better understanding animal ecology in terms of thermal habitat use has become a focus of ecological studies, in large part due to the predicted temperature increases associated with global climate change. To further our knowledge on how ground-nesting endotherms respond to thermal landscapes, we examined the thermal ecology of Sharp-tailed Grouse (Tympanuchus phasianellus) during the nesting period. We measured site-specific iButton temperatures (TiB) and vegetation characteristics at nest sites, nearby random sites, and landscape sites to assess thermal patterns at scales relevant to nesting birds. We asked if microhabitat vegetation characteristics at nest sites matched the characteristics that directed macrohabitat …

Effects Of Patch Size And Basal Area On Avian Taxonomic And Functional Diversity In Pine Forests: Implication For The Influence Of Habitat Quality On The Species–Area Relationship, Myung-Bok Lee, John P. Carroll

School of Natural Resources: Faculty Publications

Relationships between avian diversity and habitat area are assumed to be positive; however, often little attention has given to how these relationships can be influenced by the habitat structure or quality. In addition, other components of biodiversity, such as functional diversity, are often overlooked in assessing habitat patch value. In the Sandhills Ecoregion of Georgia, USA, we investigated the relationship between avian species richness and functional diversity, forest basal area, and patch size in pine forests using basal area as a surrogate for overstory structure which in turn impacts vegetation structure and determines habitat quality within a patch. We conducted …

Environmental Studies 129: Water Policy In The Western U.S., Costanza Rampini

Faculty Publications, Environmental Studies

Water, or lack of it, is the defining characteristic of development in the Western United States. Using multiple analytical frameworks, including history, law, economics, environmental science, and sociology, we will investigate the interrelationships of key policies, players, and projects involved in Western water. More specifically, we will critically examine how important federal, state, and local water policies arose and how they affect different stakeholder groups (e.g., irrigators, environmentalists, indigenous peoples, the local citizenry, government entities, public water resource agencies). We will also learn about how stakeholder values and corresponding water policies have changed, or failed to change, over time. Case …

The Flathead Catfish Invasion Of The Great Lakes, Pam L. Fuller, Gary E. Whelan

United States Geological Survey: Staff Publications

A detailed review of historical literature andmuseumdata revealed that flathead catfish were not historically native in the Great Lakes Basin, with the possible exception of a relict population in Lake Erie. The species has invaded Lake Erie, Lake St. Clair, Lake Huron, nearly all drainages in Michigan, and the Fox/Wolf and Milwaukee drainages in Wisconsin. They have not been collected from Lake Superior yet, and the temperature suitability of that lake is questionable. Flathead catfish have been stocked sparingly in the Great Lakes and is not the mechanism responsible for their spread. A stocking in 1968 in Ohio may be …

Accounting For Spatial Autocorrelation In Modeling The Distribution Of Water Quality Variables, Lorrayne Miralha

Theses and Dissertations--Geography

Several studies in hydrology have reported differences in outcomes between models in which spatial autocorrelation (SAC) is accounted for and those in which SAC is not. However, the capacity to predict the magnitude of such differences is still ambiguous. In this thesis, I hypothesized that SAC, inherently possessed by a response variable, influences spatial modeling outcomes. I selected ten watersheds in the USA and analyzed them to determine whether water quality variables with higher Moran’s I values undergo greater increases in the coefficient of determination (R²) and greater decreases in residual SAC (rSAC) after spatial modeling. I compared non-spatial ordinary …

Preferential Production And Transport Of Grass-Derived Pyrogenic Carbon In Ne-Australian Savanna Ecosystems, Gustavo Saiz, Iain Goodrick, Christopher Wurster, Paul N. Nelson, Jonathan G. Wynn, Michael Bird

School of Geosciences Faculty and Staff Publications

Understanding the main factors driving fire regimes in grasslands and savannas is critical to better manage their biodiversity and functions. Moreover, improving our knowledge on pyrogenic carbon (PyC) dynamics, including formation, transport and deposition, is fundamental to better understand a significant slow-cycling component of the global carbon cycle, particularly as these ecosystems account for a substantial proportion of the area globally burnt. However, a thorough assessment of past fire regimes in grass-dominated ecosystems is problematic due to challenges in interpreting the charcoal record of sediments. It is therefore critical to adopt appropriate sampling and analytical methods to allow the acquisition …

Using Prescription Drug Monitoring Data To Inform Population Level Analysis Of Opioid Analgesic Utilization, Huong T. T. Luu

Theses and Dissertations--Epidemiology and Biostatistics

Increased opioid analgesic (OA) prescribing has been associated with increased risk of prescription opioid diversion, misuse, and abuse. States established prescription drug monitoring programs (PDMPs) to collect and analyze electronic records for dispensed controlled substances to reduce prescription drug abuse and diversion. PDMP data can be used by prescribers for tracking patient’s history of controlled substance prescribing to inform clinical decisions.

The studies in this dissertation are focused on the less utilized potential of the PDMP data to enhance public health surveillance to monitor OA prescribing and co-prescribing and association with opioid overdose mortality and morbidity. Longitudinal analysis of OA …

Patterns Of Trematode Distribution From Hosts Collected At Lake Winnibigoshish, Minnesota, Scott Malotka

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

A comparative and seasonal study was performed on trematode populations and communities within waterfowl definitive hosts in order to determine important factors in the structuring of these communities. Furthermore, larval trematode populations were also sampled in order to compare larval stages found within snail hosts to adult stages found within collected waterfowl in order to determine where infections could have occurred with the trematode species. 52 birds including 18 blue-winged teal (Anas discors), 5 bufflehead (Bucephala albeola), 4 common goldeneye (Bucephala clangula), 1 greater scaup (Aythya marila), 1 green-winged teal (Anas carolinensis), 11 lesser scaup (Aythya affinis), 1 northern pintail …

Social Science Perspectives On Drivers Of And Responses To Global, Andrew K. Jorgenson, Shirley Fiske, Klaus Hubacek, Jia Li, Tom Mcgovern, Torben Rick, Juliet B. Schor, William Solecki, Richard York, Ariela Zycherman

Publications and Research

This article provides a review of recent anthropological, archeological, geographical, and sociological research on anthropogenic drivers of climate change, with a particular focus on drivers of carbon emissions, mitigation and adaptation. The four disciplines emphasize cultural, economic, geographic, historical, political, and social‐structural factors to be important drivers of and responses to climate change. Each of these disciplines has unique perspectives and makes noteworthy contributions to our shared understanding of anthropogenic drivers, but they also complement one another and contribute to integrated, multidisciplinary frameworks. The article begins with discussions of research on temporal dimensions of human drivers of carbon emissions, highlighting …

Recent Ecological Change In Ancient Lakes, Stephanie E. Hampton, Suzanne Mcgowan, Ted Ozersky, Salvatore G. P. Virdis, Tuong Thuy Vu, Trisha L. Spanbauer, Benjamin M. Kraemer, George Swann, Anson W. Mackay, Stephen M. Powers, Michael F. Meyer, Stephanie G. Labou, Catherine M. O'Reilly, Morgan Dicarlo, Aaron W. E. Galloway, Sherilyn C. Fritz

Department of Earth and Atmospheric Sciences: Faculty Publications

Ancient lakes are among the best archivists of past environmental change, having experienced more than one full glacial cycle, a wide range of climatic conditions, tectonic events, and long association with human settlements. These lakes not only record long histories of environmental variation and human activity in their sediments, but also harbor very high levels of biodiversity and endemism. Yet, ancient lakes are faced with a familiar suite of anthropogenic threats, which may degrade the unusual properties that make them especially valuable to science and society. In all ancient lakes for which data exist, significant warming of surface waters has …

Climate Change And Eutrophication: A Short Review, Mohammad Nazari-Sharabian, Sajjad Ahmad, Moses Karakouzian

Civil and Environmental Engineering and Construction Faculty Research

Water resources are vital not only for human beings but essentially all ecosystems. Human health is at risk if clean drinking water becomes contaminated. Water is also essential for agriculture, manufacturing, energy production and other diverse uses. Therefore, a changing climate and its potential effects put more pressure on water resources. Climate change may cause increased water demand as a result of rising temperatures and evaporation while decreasing water availability. On the other hand, extreme events as a result of climate change can increase surface runoff and flooding, deteriorating water quality as well. One effect is water eutrophication, which occurs …

An Examination Of Beta Diversity Indices And Their Predictors In Two Large-Scale Systems, Philip Schroeder

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Biodiversity is what conservation biology was developed to conserve. It is the physical manifestation of life as a concept and, be it for practical or idealistic reasons, all conservationists seek to protect or, in some cases, enhance it. Because of its monolithic importance to the field, much effort has been expended trying to better measure and understand it. Recently, greater attention has been paid to the partition of diversity; the observation that the total diversity of a system (γ) can be broken down into within-site diversity (α) and between-site diversity (β). In particular, it has been noticed that the β …

How Important Is Groundwater Availability And Stream Perenniality To Riparian And Floodplain Tree Growth?, Neil E. Pettit, Raymond H. Froend

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Riparian vegetation is important for stream functioning and as a major landscape feature. For many riparian plants, shallow groundwater is an important source of water, particularly in areas where rainfall is low, either annually or seasonally, and when extended dry conditions prevail for all or part of the year. The nature of tree water relationships is highly complex. Therefore, we used multiple lines of evidence to determine the water sources used by the dominant tree species Eucalyptus camaldulensis (river red gum), growing in riparian and floodplain areas with varying depth to groundwater and stream perenniality. Dendrometer bands were used to …

The Value Of Animal Behaviour As A Bio-Indicator Of Restoration Quality, Floyd Holmes

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

Woodland restoration is a complex endeavour, and restoration ecology as a scientific discipline requires constant re-assessments and adjustments if it is to improve outcomes and better provide for biodiversity. The promise of effective restoration is often used to justify destructive processes that affect many of the world’s ecosystems. It is therefore imperative that those promises can be met, which comes down to restoration ecologists’ and land managers’ capacity to predict and facilitate desirable ecological changes in a timely and socio-economically responsible manner. As perspectives have changed, and knowledge has been gained over the past few decades there have been several …

Effects Of Water Level Increase On Phytoplankton Assemblages In A Drinking Water Reservoir, Yangdong Pan, Shijun Guo, Yuying Li, Wei Yin, Pengcheng Qi, Jainwei Shi, Lanqun Hu, Bing Li, Shengge Bi, Jingya Zhu

Environmental Science and Management Faculty Publications and Presentations

Excessive water level fluctuation may affect physico-chemical characteristics, and consequently ecosystem function, in lakes and reservoirs. In this study, we assessed the changes of phytoplankton assemblages in response to water level increase in Danjiangkou Reservoir, one of the largest drinking water reservoirs in Asia. The water level increased from a low of 137 m to 161 m in 2014 as a part of the South–North Water Diversion Project. Phytoplankton assemblages were sampled four times per year before, during and after the water level increase, at 10 sites. Environmental variables such as total nitrogen as well as phytoplankton biomass decreased after …

Existing Ecological Conditions And Management Recommendations For A Portion Of The Chehalem Ridge Nature Park, Oregon, Amanda Pole

Environmental Science and Management Professional Master's Project Reports

Effective land management and habitat restoration work rely on the collection of baseline information regarding the existing conditions of the planning area. Existing conditions assessments can include such information as hydrologic conditions, botanical species assessment, land use issues, wildlife surveys, habitat distribution/quality assessments, etc. This project provides Oregon Metro’s Parks and Nature department with updated information regarding the existing conditions of a portion of the Chehalem Ridge Nature Park (CRNP) as well as recommendations and supplemental maps to aid in future management planning.

Within the ~61-acre project area exist several habitat types: a developing seasonal wetland, riparian forest, Douglas-fir forest, …

Within-Fire Patchiness Associated With Prescribed Burning In The Northern Jarrah Forests Of Western Australia, Zigourney Nielsen

Theses: Doctorates and Masters

There is growing understanding of the importance of landscape mosaics and heterogeneity for biodiversity outcomes in Western Australia. However, there is limited information on the patchiness (spatial configuration of unburnt and burnt patches which occur at a range of spatial scales) within the perimeter of a single prescribed burn. Of particular concern is the idea that prescribed burning operations, carried out under very restricted weather and environmental conditions, can lead to structural and floristic homogenization of the area within a burn perimeter. This may be evident as reduced post-fire vegetation patchiness. Western Australian Jarrah (Eucalyptus marginata) forests are managed to …

Automated Species Classification Methods For Passive Acoustic Monitoring Of Beaked Whales, John Lebien

LSU New Orleans Theses and Dissertations

The Littoral Acoustic Demonstration Center has collected passive acoustic monitoring data in the northern Gulf of Mexico since 2001. Recordings were made in 2007 near the Deepwater Horizon oil spill that provide a baseline for an extensive study of regional marine mammal populations in response to the disaster. Animal density estimates can be derived from detections of echolocation signals in the acoustic data. Beaked whales are of particular interest as they remain one of the least understood groups of marine mammals, and relatively few abundance estimates exist. Efficient methods for classifying detected echolocation transients are essential for mining long-term passive …

Pros And Cons Of Marine Zoological Parks According To Marine Conservationists, Kayla L. Patama

HCNSO Student Capstones

Throughout history zoos and aquariums have satisfied a number of different, albeit to some, conflicting roles (Ballantyne, Packer, Hughes, & Dierking, 2007). In recent years, zoos and aquariums have shifted their focus on taking a proactive role in wildlife conservation and promoting conservation learning among their visitors. The present capstone addresses the justifications that marine conservationists see in marine zoological parks and how they believe parks can become more relevant and valuable in the future. A 65 question survey (Appendix I) was distributed to marine science professionals online through personal contact between June and September 2017 questioning participant’s personal opinions …

Evaluation Of Water Resources And Hydraulic Influences In The Restoration Of The Western Part Of The Mesopotamian Marshlands, Ali Kareem Al-Quraishi

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to assess the water resources and water conveyance system of the western part of the Mesopotamian marshes (Al-Hammar marsh) as well as develop a water conveyance system to distribute water throughout the western Al-Hammar marsh. These processes are significant to identify the current restoration problems and help to create restoration strategies for the marsh. Also, proper management strategy to the Al-Hammar marsh is necessary to preserve the marsh ecosystem, irrigate lands, and provide domestic necessities in the villages.

The overall project is divided into three main chapters which address the current ecological and hydrological …

Rqgis: Integrating R With Qgis For Statistical Geocomputing, Jannes Muenchow, Patrick Schratz, Alexander Brenning

The R Journal

Integrating R with Geographic Information Systems (GIS) extends R’s statistical capabilities with numerous geoprocessing and data handling tools available in a GIS. QGIS is one of the most popular open-source GIS, and it furthermore integrates other GIS programs such as the System for Automated Geoscientific Analyses (SAGA) GIS and the Geographic Resources Analysis Support System (GRASS) GIS within a single software environment. This and its QGIS Python API makes it a perfect candidate for console-based geoprocessing. By establishing an interface, the R package RQGIS makes it possible to use QGIS as a geoprocessing workhorse from within R. Compared to other …

Ecological And Oceanographic Influences On Leatherback Turtle Behavior And Scyphozoan Jellyfish Distributions In The Gulf Of Mexico, Katrina Aleksa

Dissertations

Leatherback turtles (Dermochelys coriacea) are a wide-ranging, oceanic species that feed exclusively on gelatinous zooplankton. Leatherback have been spotted in the Gulf of Mexico (GoM) for several decades and consistently had a high level of interactions with longline fisheries. However, no quantitative studies have been performed to address the spatiotemporal distribution of these turtles in the GoM. This research determines 1) leatherback movements and high-use areas in the GoM, 2) their association with oceanographic features, 3) the distribution and density of two abundant medusae in the northern GoM and any association with biophysical parameters, and 4) the body …

Functional Predictions Of Microbial Communities In Soil As Affected By Long‐Term Tillage Practices, Janani Hariharan, Aditi Sengupta, Parwinder Grewal, Warren A. Dick

School of Earth, Environmental, & Marine Sciences Faculty Publications

Core Ideas

• Microbial function is important but difficult to assess in soil.
• An omics‐driven tool, PICRUSt, was used to characterize functions of soil microbial communities.
• No‐tillage compared with plow tillage was functionally enriched for most nutrient cycles.
• Many other functions integral to soil health can be explored by the PICRUSt omics approach.

Soil microbial communities affect the soil's biological, chemical, and physical properties, but there is still a knowledge gap regarding the long‐term impact of tillage practices on soil microbial dynamics. Additionally, the accurate identification of belowground microbial functions is a topic of active interest. In this study, microbial community …

Frontline Experiences From Changing Fisheries Bycatch Paradigms, David Kerstetter

Marine & Environmental Sciences Faculty Proceedings, Presentations, Speeches, Lectures

No abstract provided.

A Presence-Absence Survey To Monitor Montezuma Quail In Western Texas, Cristela Gonzalez Sanders, Fidel Hernández, Leonard A. Brennan, Andrew N. Tri, Robert Perez

National Quail Symposium Proceedings

Developing an effective monitoring program for Montezuma quail (Cyrtonyx montezumae) is challenging because the technique must be practical for surveying vast, remote landscapes while accounting for the species’ low detectability. We used call-back surveys within a presence–absence framework to estimate occupancy and detection probability of Montezuma quail and used this information in conjunction with habitat data to develop an estimated probability of occurrence map for the species. We established survey points at 4 sites in western Texas (n = 20–30 points/site) and conducted 5 repeat surveys/season during June–August 2007 and 2008. We documented abiotic conditions (temperature, time …