Digital Commons Network^™

Summary Of 2015 Winter Bat Monitoring At Mammoth Cave National Park, Laura Shultz, Chris Clark, Rick Toomey, Shannon Trimboli

Mammoth Cave Research Symposia

No abstract provided.

The Activity Of Myotis Sodalis And Myotis Septentrionalis Changes On The Landscape Of Mammoth Cave National Park Following The Arrival Of White-Nose Syndrome, Rachael Griffitts, Luke E. Dodd, Michael J. Lacki

Mammoth Cave Research Symposia

No abstract provided.

Conducting A Biological Inventory Of Sloan’S Crossing Pond, Miranda Thompson, Jason A. Matthews, Christy Soldo

Mammoth Cave Research Symposia

No abstract provided.

Host-Parasite Associations Of Small Mammal Communities: Implications For The Spread Of Lyme Disease, Matthew Buchholz, Carl Dick

Mammoth Cave Research Symposia

No abstract provided.

Potential Evidence For Arsenic Mineralization In Mussel Shells In The Upper Green River Basin, Kentucky, Autumn Turner, Chris Groves, Aaron Celestian, Albert Meier

Mammoth Cave Research Symposia

No abstract provided.

Mapping Temperate Vegetation Climate Adaptation Variability Using Normalized Land Surface Phenology, Liang Liang, Mark D. Schwartz, Xiaoyang Zhang

GSCE Faculty Publications

Climate influences geographic differences of vegetation phenology through both contemporary and historical variability. The latter effect is embodied in vegetation heterogeneity underlain by spatially varied genotype and species compositions tied to climatic adaptation. Such long-term climatic effects are difficult to map and therefore often neglected in evaluating spatially explicit phenological responses to climate change. In this study we demonstrate a way to indirectly infer the portion of land surface phenology variation that is potentially contributed by underlying genotypic differences across space. The method undertaken normalized remotely sensed vegetation start-of-season (or greenup onset) with a cloned plants-based phenological model. As the …

Mapping Temperate Vegetation Climate Adaptation Variability Using Normalized Land Surface Phenology, Liang Liang, Mark D. Schwartz, Xiaoyang Zhang

Geography Faculty Publications

Climate influences geographic differences of vegetation phenology through both contemporary and historical variability. The latter effect is embodied in vegetation heterogeneity underlain by spatially varied genotype and species compositions tied to climatic adaptation. Such long-term climatic effects are difficult to map and therefore often neglected in evaluating spatially explicit phenological responses to climate change. In this study we demonstrate a way to indirectly infer the portion of land surface phenology variation that is potentially contributed by underlying genotypic differences across space. The method undertaken normalized remotely sensed vegetation start-of-season (or greenup onset) with a cloned plants-based phenological model. As the …

A Vision For Extension: Case Studies On Managing Extreme Weather Challenges In Corn, Anthony J. Mcmechan

Doctor of Plant Health Program: Dissertations and Student Research

Global demand for corn is projected to rise in the coming decades to meet the food and fuel requirements of an increasing human population. Technological innovations have significantly improved corn yields over the past few decades; however, corn production is continually limited by unfavorable weather conditions. Extreme weather events put pressure on producers, adjustors, and consultants to make quick management decisions to maintain the highest return on their investment. Proper management decisions require an understanding of plant response and practical ways of applying this knowledge under real world conditions.

The following document was written after completing a six-month internship at …

Biology, Gene Flow, And Management Of Glyphosate-Resistant Common Waterhemp (Amaranthus Rudis Sauer) In Nebraska, Debalin Sarangi

Department of Agronomy and Horticulture: Dissertations, Theses, and Student Research

Common waterhemp is the most troublesome weed in the midwestern United States. Growers from Nebraska reported failure to control common waterhemp following sequential applications of glyphosate in glyphosate-tolerant corn and soybean, which led to moderate to severe yield loss; justifying the need to confirm resistance and study the biology and management of common waterhemp. The objectives of this research were: 1) to confirm the presence of glyphosate-resistant (GR) common waterhemp biotypes in Nebraska and to evaluate their sensitivity to herbicides belonging to alternative sites-of-action; 2) to evaluate the response of common waterhemp to water stress; 3) to quantify pollen-mediated gene …

Meta-Analysis Of Research Conducted At Mammoth Cave National Park, 1980-2013, Andrea Bachman, Nicole Erb, Ellen Mcphillips, Matthew Rice, Tawni Riker, David Kime

Mammoth Cave Research Symposia

No abstract provided.

Surveys For The Diamond Darter (Crystallaria Cincotta), An Endangered Species Known Historically From The Green River In Kentucky, Matthew Thomas, Stephanie L. Brandt

Mammoth Cave Research Symposia

No abstract provided.

Evaluating Pedestrial Compaction Variation & Soil Organic C Content, Gunner B. Decker

Scholars Week

Over time, playing fields are monitored by overall appearance. However, pedestrian compaction is not evenly distributed throughout the entire surface.

Flint Ridge Cave History And Legends, Norman L. Warnell, Stanley D. Sides

Mammoth Cave Research Symposia

No abstract provided.

Proceedings For Celebrating The Diversity Of Research In The Mammoth Cave Region: 11th Research Symposium At Mammoth Cave National Park, Shannon R. Trimboli Editor, Luke E. Dodd, Editor, De'etra Young, Editor

Mammoth Cave Research Symposia

No abstract provided.

2016 Symposium Schedule Of Events, Shannon R. Trimboli Education Coordinator

Mammoth Cave Research Symposia

This is the Schedule of Events for Mammoth Cave National Park's 11th Research Symposium.

Using Koch’S Postulate To Identify The Causative Agent Of Dieback In Malosma Laurina During Historic Drought In California, Adriana J. Borges, Emily R. Pierce, Mariah K. Taylor, Frida J. Morales

Featured Research

Coastal Southern California has a Mediterranean-type climate, meaning that it experiences warm, dry summers and cool, wet winters. Recently, California has been experiencing an unprecedented drought, possibly as a result of climate change. Malosma laurina is a typically hearty chaparral plant is known for being resistant to drought due to its deep rooting depth, but even it is being negatively affected by drought and is experiencing dieback. Some of this dieback is caused by a Botryospharae fungal infection, which blocks xylem conduits and stops water flow through the plant. With a looming El Niño, this study seeks to understand the …

Influence Of Water Hardness On Accumulation And Effects Of Silver In The Green Alga, Raphidocelis Subcapitata, Aarya Venkat, Adriana L. Amerson, Gretchen K. Bielmyer-Fraser

Georgia Journal of Science

Metal pollution from anthropogenic sources can pose a threat to aquatic systems. Silver is released into the environment from various industrial processes. In excess, silver can accumulate and cause adverse effects in aquatic organisms, particularly those in lower trophic levels, such as phytoplankton. Water chemistry parameters, such as hardness, have been shown to modify toxicity of metals because divalent cations compete with the metal for binding sites on the biological membrane. The objective of this study was to assess population growth and silver accumulation in the green alga, Raphidocelis subcapitata, after silver exposure in waters of varying hardness for 7 …

Effects Of Heat Shock On Photosynthetic Properties, Antioxidant Enzyme Activity, And Downy Mildew Of Cucumber (Cucumis Sativus L.), Xiaotao Ding, Yuping Jiang, Ting Hao, Haijun Jin, Hongmei Zhang, Lizhong He, Qiang Zhou, Danfeng Huang, Dafeng Hui, Jizhu Yu

Biology Faculty Research

Heat shock is considered an abiotic stress for plant growth, but the effects of heat shock on physiological responses of cucumber plant leaves with and without downy mildew disease are still not clear. In this study, cucumber seedlings were exposed to heat shock in greenhouses, and the responses of photosynthetic properties, carbohydrate metabolism, antioxidant enzyme activity, osmolytes, and disease severity index of leaves with or without the downy mildew disease were measured. Results showed that heat shock significantly decreased the net photosynthetic rate, actual photochemical efficiency, photochemical quenching coefficient, and starch content. Heat shock caused an increase in the stomatal …

Allelopathic Compounds In Adenostoma Fasciculatum Leaves May Inhibit Seed Germination Of Ceanothus Megacarpus, Olivia L. Le Sage, Shamiran C. Prater, Christian M. Botello

Featured Research

We investigated the effects the allelopathogen thought to be found in Adenostoma fasciculatum leaves on seed germination in Ceanothus megacarpus seeds. We hypothesized that seeds treated with an extract containing the allelopathogen would not germinate, compared to seeds not treated with the allelopathogen. We hypothesized this because Adenostoma fasciculatum is known to produce an allelopathogen which inhibits growth in nearby plants in a natural environment. We prepared a 70% ethanol extract with Adenostoma fasciculatum leaves and treated 30 scarified Ceanothus megacarpus seeds with it; 30 additional Ceanothus megacarpus seeds were only given 70% ethanol. We placed these seeds in a …

The Effect Of Temperature On Root Nodulation And Growth In Glycine Max, Brooke O’Neill, Katherine Kawachi

Featured Research

This investigation explores the effects of temperature on root nodulation and other plant growth factors in soy bean plants. Vegetative development such as node appearance rate increases as temperatures rise to the species’ optimum level, in which the maximum temperature for growth in C₃ plants is 25 °C. (Hatfield, 2015). We hypothesized that soy bean plants would produce more nodules in 25°C than 35°C, rationalizing the Q₁₀ theory which states that a 10 degree temperature change produces measureable effects in biological and chemical metabolic systems. This idea becomes worthy of experiment when looking at how increasing temperature affects …

Comparison Of Nighttime Stomatal Conductance In Malosma Laurnia And Encelia Californica, Stephanie R. Kaplan, Jessica T. Gash, Hannah H. Ziegler

Featured Research

The experiment aimed to look at the comparison between the nighttime stomatal conductance of Malosma laurina and Encelia californica. Through the use of leaf porometry and subsequent data analysis, it was determined that there was no statistical differnce between either species, due to the fact that the Malosma laurina was a resprouted species, that needed significantly less water than a fully mature M. laurina plant would have needed.

The Effect Of Water Deficit On Photosynthetic Properties Of Salvia Leucophylla, Brianna Scott, Theadora Ordog, Alexis Lordi

Featured Research

California has been in a severe drought in recent years due to anthropogenic warming, and it has had a major effect on chemical and physical properties of native plants. Salvia leucophylla, a common plant in Southern California, has evolved an adaptation to water stress through losing its leaves, known as a drought deciduous plant. Considering the increase of CO2 in the atmosphere, it is absolutely essential for leaves to retain their ability to photosynthesize to maintain the health of the environment through CO2 sequestration. The objective of this experiment was to see how drought levels affect the physical and …

Effects Of Drought On Antimicrobial Properties Of A Chaparral Indicator Species — Adenostoma Fasciculatum, Andrew Shute, Jennifer Duff, Salina Pearce-Harris

Featured Research

The dominant plant type of Pepperdine’s Malibu campus is chaparral, of which an important indicator species is Adenostoma fasciculatum. It is known that A. fasciculatum produces compounds that are deadly to many bacteria. However, California is currently experiencing unprecedented drought, which is pushing plants well beyond their normal stress levels. In this study, we investigated the effect of drought stress on the ability of A. fasciculatum to inhibit growth of bacteria. We hypothesized that extract from drought-stressed plants would be better able to kill bacteria than hydrated ones, because the plant would be induced to produce more antimicrobial compounds …

Root Hydraulic Conductance In Laurel Sumac Experiencing Severe Dieback In The Santa Monica Mountains, Natalie M. Aguirre, Avery N. Davis, Sarah B. Nelson, Stephen D. Davis

Featured Research

Malosma laurina (laurel sumac) is a dominant species in coastal chaparral ecosystems, extending its roots down to an average of 40 feet in rocky, sandy soils. The deep root systems of M. laurina provide structural support for the steep Santa Monica Mountains. The roots also allow M. laurina to draw from the deep water table, increasing its drought tolerance. M. laurina dieback is prevalent in coastal exposures of the Santa Monica Mountains presumably due to historic drought predisposing plant tissues to infection by the fungal pathogen Botryosphaeria dothidea. In ecosystems that experience annual dry periods, a high hydraulic conductance …

Comparing The Electron Transport Rate Of Nico%Ana Glauca And Encelia Californica At Normal And Increased Par, Carter Clinebell, Griffin Duvall, Daniel Suh

Featured Research

The purpose of this experiment is to investigate how normal and increased sunlight affects both indigenous and non-native species in Southern California’s chaparral ecosystem. Encelia californica and Nicotiana glauca were chosen as representative native and invasive species respectively. The electron transport rate (ETR) of the two species are expected to be higher at 2400 PAR (photosynthetic active radiation) than at 2000 PAR. The ETR between the two species is also expected to be different. The difference between species is important for understanding the advantages and disadvantages of species dependent on sunlight exposure. The ETR was measured using a Li-Cor 6400 …

The Effect Of The Tapia Water Treatment Plant On The Growth Of Lemna Minor, Morgan Clark, Imani Goodman, William Ota, Alora Yarbrough

Featured Research

Human beings are changing not just global temperature but even the makeup of the water in our planet's rivers and streams. The Tapia Water Treatment Facility is located in the upper section of Malibu creek and treats around 9.5 million gallons per day of water which is then released into the Malibu watershed. This water is treated using chemicals not typically found in local streams and these chemicals may be harming the organisms that live downstream of the water treatment plant. Downstream from the Tapia water treatment plant we were able to find increased levels of both nitrates and phosphates …

Gibsonville Healthy Forest Restoration Project: Silviculture Report, Dan Roskopf

Aspen Bibliography

The Forest Service proposes to reduce the risk of wildfire, to protect, restore, and enhance forest ecosystem components (i.e., streams, meadows, aspen areas) in the vicinity of Gibsonville, California. A combination of hazard tree removal, forest health, and fuels reduction treatments are proposed on 1,200 acres of Forest Service system lands. These actions are proposed to be implemented on the Feather River Ranger District of the Plumas National Forest.

Effects Of Predator Satiation On Seed Predation In New Roadside Prairie Plantings, Jessica Riebkes

Annual Graduate Student Symposium

This poster is a summary of the work I have done for my master's thesis. The goal of this research was to treat new prairie plantings in roadside rights-of-way with a plentiful source of supplemental seed in order to satiate seed predators. The goal of satiating predators was to reduce predation on prairie seed, improving seedling establishment of the planted species.

Effects Of Soil Type And Diversity On Soil Respiration And Litter Decomposition In A Perennial Biofuel Production System, Jordan Young

Annual Graduate Student Symposium

For my master's thesis, I researched soil respiration and litter decomposition at the Cedar River Ecological Research Site. Respiration and decomposition are important processes in the understanding of carbon sequestration, which is one of the main benefits of using biofuels. Cellulosic biofuels can be produced from a wide diversity of plants on a wide range of soil types, and these factors can influence the rate of carbon sequestration, so I investigated the effects of plant diversity and soil type in the context of perennial biofuel production.

The Effects Of Human Involvement: A Study Of Transplanted Nassella Pulchra In A Competitive Environment, Miranda Prints, Summer Ngo, Taylor Purdy

Featured Research

When construction began on the Drescher Graduate Campus, the need to preserve a rare native California grass saw the creation of a transplant garden. A perennial bunchgrass, Nassella pulchra (purple needlegrass), was replanted. Based on a hypothesis that Avena fatua (wild oats), a competitor, would have a greater health than the native grass Nassella pulchra, we measured stomatal conductance, fluorescence, evident fitness, and water potential. In our second hypothesis, we proposed that the naturally occurring Nassella pulchra would have a higher stomatal conductance, a higher fluorescence, a higher water potential, and overall higher fitness than the transplanted …