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Articles 31 - 60 of 163
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Alaskan Arctic Epibenthic Communities: Distribution Patterns, Links To The Environment, And Brittle Star Population Dynamics, Alexandra Mariela Ravelo
Alaskan Arctic Epibenthic Communities: Distribution Patterns, Links To The Environment, And Brittle Star Population Dynamics, Alexandra Mariela Ravelo
Marine Biology
The Arctic marine shelves are characterized by areas of high and low invertebrate standing stock and communities that vary spatially in patches. Large-scale environmental characteristics, such as the distribution of water masses, the fenology of sea ice cover, and variability of water depth define changes in epibenthic community structure throughout the Arctic shelves. The longevity and relatively low mobility of epibenthic invertebrates make them especially relevant as indicators of long-term environmental patterns. In terms of standing stock and biomass, the most representative group among Arctic epibenthic taxa are brittle stars. Large areas of the Arctic shelves have dense assemblages of …
Trophic Pathways Supporting Juvenile Chinook And Coho Salmon In The Glacial Susitna River, Alaska: Patterns Of Freshwater, Terrestrial, And Marine Resource Use Across A Seasonally Dynamic Habitat Mosaic, Kristin M. Rine
Biological Sciences
In large, seasonally dynamic and spatially complex watersheds, the availability and relative importance of various food resources for stream fishes can be expected to vary substantially. While numerous studies have attempted to uncover the trophic linkages that support stream salmonids, much of these efforts have occurred at small scales that disregard variability of food resources inherent in lotic systems. This study aimed to determine large-scale patterns in the contributions of freshwater, terrestrial, and marine-derived food resources to juvenile Chinook and Coho salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha and O. kisutch) in the large, glacially influenced Susitna River, Alaska. I quantified diet patterns both …
Sea-Ice Habitat Preference Of The Pacific Walrus (Odobenus Rosmarus Divergens) In The Bering Sea: A Multiscaled Approach, Alexander Edward Sacco
Sea-Ice Habitat Preference Of The Pacific Walrus (Odobenus Rosmarus Divergens) In The Bering Sea: A Multiscaled Approach, Alexander Edward Sacco
Geosciences
The goal of this thesis is to define specific parameters of mesoscale sea-ice seascapes for which walruses show preference during important periods of their natural history. This research thesis incorporates sea-ice geophysics, marine-mammal ecology, remote sensing, computer vision techniques, and traditional ecological knowledge of indigenous subsistence hunters in order to quantitatively study walrus preference of sea ice during the spring migration in the Bering Sea. Using an approach that applies seascape ecology, or landscape ecology to the marine environment, our goal is to define specific parameters of ice-patch descriptors and mesoscale seascapes in order to evaluate and describe potential walrus …
Alpine Thermal Dynamics And Associated Constraints On The Behavior Of Mountain Goats In Southeast Alaska, Jeffrey HéBert Frederick
Alpine Thermal Dynamics And Associated Constraints On The Behavior Of Mountain Goats In Southeast Alaska, Jeffrey HéBert Frederick
Biological Sciences
Alpine Caprinae, including mountain goats (Oreamnos americanus), have been described to be sensitive to temperature changes within their summer range and consequently may be forced to select habitats that allow for the maintenance of a stable core temperature on warm days. Survival may be inhibited if warm ambient temperatures cause mountain goats to reduce time foraging or if too much time is spent on thermoregulatory habitat selection. I investigated mountain goat behavioral activity budgets across alpine temperature gradients in Southeast Alaska using focal animal sampling and scan sampling techniques. I tested the effects of temperature on mountain goat activity and …
Effects Of Harvest On Wolf Social Structure, Population Dynamics, And Viewing Opportunities In National Parks, Bridget Borg
Effects Of Harvest On Wolf Social Structure, Population Dynamics, And Viewing Opportunities In National Parks, Bridget Borg
Biological Sciences
Management of gray wolves (Canis lupus) in and adjacent to Denali National Park and Preserve (DNPP) is complex. Wolves that live primarily within the park, where they are protected from harvest, often range across the boundary of the park where harvest of wolves is legal. Protection of wolves within the park provides for wolf viewing opportunities along the Denali Park Road for tens of thousands of visitors annually. Additionally, there is interest in maintaining wolf harvest opportunities adjacent to the park. The objectives for wolf viewing and harvest have been perceived as in direct conflict, but quantitative analysis of the …
Understanding Place In Fisheries Management: An Examination Of Ecological And Social Communities In The Pribilof Islands, Alaska, Courtney Lyons
Understanding Place In Fisheries Management: An Examination Of Ecological And Social Communities In The Pribilof Islands, Alaska, Courtney Lyons
Fisheries
Holistic approaches toward fisheries management are widely considered a more sustainable option than standard single-species frameworks. This project uses the holistic frameworks of ecosystem-based fisheries management (EBFM) and place-making to examine the ecological and social systems of the Pribilof Islands and the ways in which fisheries management decisions have structured these systems. In Chapter 1, we sought to understand potential ecological constraints of temperature, fish predation, and interactions with a congener (red king crab; Paralithodes camtschaticus) on blue king crab (Paralithodes platypus) recovery. These examinations suggest that blue king crab juveniles switch strategies from predator avoidance to a strategy of …
Trophic Pathways Supporting Arctic Grayling In A Small Stream On The Arctic Coastal Plain, Alaska, Jason John Mcfarland
Trophic Pathways Supporting Arctic Grayling In A Small Stream On The Arctic Coastal Plain, Alaska, Jason John Mcfarland
Biological Sciences
Arctic Grayling (Thymallus arcticus) are widely distributed on the Arctic Coastal Plain (ACP) of Alaska, and are one of the few upper level consumers in streams, but the trophic pathways and food resources supporting these fish are unknown. Grayling migrate each summer into small beaded streams, which are common across the landscape on the ACP, and appear to be crucial foraging grounds for these and other fishes. I investigated prey resources supporting different size classes of grayling in a beaded stream, Crea Creek, where petroleum development is being planned. The specific objectives were to measure terrestrial prey subsidies entering the …
Dispersal Patterns And Summer Oceanic Distribution Of Adult Dolly Varden From The Wulik River, Alaska, Evaluated Using Satellite Telemetry, Michael B. Courtney
Dispersal Patterns And Summer Oceanic Distribution Of Adult Dolly Varden From The Wulik River, Alaska, Evaluated Using Satellite Telemetry, Michael B. Courtney
Fisheries
In Arctic Alaska, Dolly Varden Salvelinus malma is highly valued as a subsistence fish; however, little is known about oceanic dispersal or ecology. This study addresses this knowledge gap, by using a fisheries independent method, pop-up satellite archival tags (PSATs). In spring of 2012 and 2013, we attached 52 PSATs to Dolly Varden in a river in northwestern Alaska, which flows into the Arctic Ocean, to examine the marine dispersal, behavior and habitat occupancy of this species. Tagged Dolly Varden demonstrated two types of dispersal, including offshore and nearshore dispersal. The offshore type was the first documented northwesterly dispersal and …
Comparisons Of Arctic Cod, Arctic Staghorn Sculpin, And Shorthorn Sculpin Diets Throughout The Northeastern Chukchi And Western Beaufort Seas, Benjamin P. Gray
Comparisons Of Arctic Cod, Arctic Staghorn Sculpin, And Shorthorn Sculpin Diets Throughout The Northeastern Chukchi And Western Beaufort Seas, Benjamin P. Gray
Fisheries
Diet information for Arctic Cod (Boreogadus saida), Arctic Staghorn Sculpin (Gymnocanthus tricuspis), and Shorthorn Sculpin (Myoxocephalus scorpius) in the northeastern Chukchi and western Beaufort seas is mostly descriptive. In this study, I examined diet variability due to region, depth, and body size by quantitatively comparing these fishes' diet compositions. To accomplish this, I analyzed the stomach contents of 1,620 fishes collected over three summers in the northeastern Chukchi Sea (2010-2012) and one summer in the western Beaufort Sea (2011). In general, body size and region accounted for most differences in diets. As body size increased, each species consumed a more …
A Descriptive Analysis Of Gastric Cancer In Alaska, Fabrice Evengue
A Descriptive Analysis Of Gastric Cancer In Alaska, Fabrice Evengue
Student Projects for Graduate Degrees
Gastric cancer or stomach cancer represents a major public health problem in the contiguous United States and in Alaska. Stomach cancer is the fourth most common malignancy and the second most common cause of cancer-related deaths throughout the world. A retrospective study of gastric cancer cases from 1996 to 2011 was undertaken and data were extracted from the Alaska Cancer Registry where cases are consistently recorded and centralized. Data were analyzed using the National Cancer Institute’s SEER* Stat statistical software (version 8.1.5). The goal of the project was to provide a detailed epidemiologic descriptive analysis of gastric cancer to better …
Feeding Ecology And Movement Patterns Of Juvenile Sablefish In Coastal Southeast Alaska, Karson Marie Coutré
Feeding Ecology And Movement Patterns Of Juvenile Sablefish In Coastal Southeast Alaska, Karson Marie Coutré
Fisheries
Sablefish, Anoplopoma fimbria, is a commercially valuable groundfish species undergoing population declines in the Gulf of Alaska and Bering Sea. This study assessed the role of juvenile sablefish as consumers in coastal Southeast Alaska (St. John Baptist Bay, Baranof Island, Alaska; SJBB) to better understand their use of habitat and food resources during their early life history. Specifically, the diet of juvenile sablefish was described for multiple seasons (summer and fall) and years (2012 and 2013) from analysis of stomach contents recovered using gastric lavage. Sablefish ate a wide variety of prey taxa, and the most important prey groups were …
Biotic And Abiotic Influences On The Use Of Arctic Lakes By Fish And Loons, Trevor B. Haynes
Biotic And Abiotic Influences On The Use Of Arctic Lakes By Fish And Loons, Trevor B. Haynes
Fisheries
The particularly severe effects of climate change anticipated in the Arctic, accompanied by ongoing anthropogenic activities, necessitate proactive and knowledge-based management of the region's aquatic ecosystems. However, the paucity of information on the Arctic's aquatic environments hinders strategic or spatially-explicit management. In this dissertation, I examine the habitat use of poorly studied taxa of the Arctic Coastal Plain (ACP) of Alaska, including freshwater fishes and yellow-billed loons (Gavia adamsii). Distribution studies can be biased by false absences; therefore, I began by determining the detection probabilities of six fish species common to Arctic lakes for five gear types (Chapter 2). Variation …
Annual Report: 2013, N/A N/A
Annual Report: 2013, N/A N/A
Annual Reports
I submit herewith the annual reports from the Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, School of Natural Resources and Agricultural Sciences, University of Alaska Fairbanks, for the period ending December 31, 2013. This is done in accordance with an act of Congress, approved March 2, 1887, entitled, “An act to establish agricultural experiment stations, in connection with the agricultural college established in the several states under the provisions of an act approved July 2, 1862, and under the acts supplementary thereto,” and also of the act of the Alaska Territorial Legislature, approved March 12, 1935, accepting the provisions of the act …
Water, Behavior, And Health In Alaska, Troy L. Ritter
Water, Behavior, And Health In Alaska, Troy L. Ritter
Biological Sciences
This dissertation addresses the need for a better understanding of how water and sanitation infrastructure and water use behaviors come together to influence health. The ultimate aim is to inform water infrastructure designs and behavior change programming for the prevention of acute respiratory infections (ARIs), skin infections, and diarrhea. All three diseases are of public health significance in Alaska, and all three can be prevented by proper access and use of water and sanitation services. I begin the dissertation by illustrating that some residents who have access to treated water continue to consume untreated river water and rain. In fact, …
Behavior, Physiology, Biological Age, And Cultural Role Of Long-Lived Bering Sea Seabirds, Rebecca C. Young
Behavior, Physiology, Biological Age, And Cultural Role Of Long-Lived Bering Sea Seabirds, Rebecca C. Young
Biological Sciences
This dissertation focuses on the intersection of behavior, physiology, and biological age. Biological age is a measure of an organism's progress through life, and it incorporates chronological age as well as the actions of environment and innate quality at the individual level. We estimate biological age using telomere length as a biomarker. Telomere degradation in relation to oxidative stress links it directly to purported proximate mechanisms of aging under the free radical theory of aging. Short telomeres, or telomere loss, have been related to ecological indicators of lowered fitness. Our work focuses on aging in the thick-billed murre (Uria lomvia), …
Spatial Variability In Plant And Soil Properties On New Zealand Seabird Islands, And The Effects Of Introduced Rats, Melody S. Durrett
Spatial Variability In Plant And Soil Properties On New Zealand Seabird Islands, And The Effects Of Introduced Rats, Melody S. Durrett
Biological Sciences
Seabirds are ecosystem engineers with two major impacts on island ecosystems: they bring large quantities of marine nutrients to the terrestrial environment in the form of guano, carcasses, feathers, eggs, and spilled food, and they disturb the soil surface. Burrowing seabirds can denude the soil surface of all seedlings and leaf litter, plowing them under and loosening the soil. However, seabirds are colonial, and burrows are not evenly spaced over the surface of an island, producing spatial variability within a single island that might reveal how seabird activities control island ecosystem function. In this dissertation I review seabird island ecology …
Soundings 2014-04-18, N/A N/A
Fishlines, 2014, N/A N/A
Online Social Media As A Social-Ecological Systems Research Tool: Facebook And Two Rural Alaskan Communities, Richard E. Hum
Online Social Media As A Social-Ecological Systems Research Tool: Facebook And Two Rural Alaskan Communities, Richard E. Hum
Rural Development
The earth has transitioned into the anthropocene, which is defined by complex environmental change linked to human behavior and requires new tools of analysis in order to understand shifting social-ecological system (SES) dynamics. In this work, I explore taking advantage of widespread online social media participation to develop the tools for doing so. Spatially grounded public exchanges on Facebook are examined with three goals in mind: 1) examine the types of SES content being passed through this communication medium, 2) compare community observations to relevant scientific observations, and 3) define a flexible and reproducible research method for integrating these communications …
Annual Report: 2012, N/A N/A
Annual Report: 2012, N/A N/A
Annual Reports
I submit herewith the annual reports from the Agricultural and Forestry Experiment Station, School of Natural Resources and Agricultural Sciences, University of Alaska Fairbanks, for the period ending December 31, 2012. This is done in accordance with an act of Congress, approved March 2, 1887, entitled, “An act to establish agricultural experiment stations, in connection with the agricultural college established in the several states under the provisions of an act approved July 2, 1862, and under the acts supplementary thereto,” and also of the act of the Alaska Territorial Legislature, approved March 12, 1935, accepting the provisions of the act …
Proceedings 19th International Northern Research Basins Symposium And Workshop Southcentral Alaska, Usa – August 11–17, 2013, Svetlana Stuefer, W. Robert Bolton
Proceedings 19th International Northern Research Basins Symposium And Workshop Southcentral Alaska, Usa – August 11–17, 2013, Svetlana Stuefer, W. Robert Bolton
INE Other
No abstract provided.
Responses Of Chlorophyll A Content For Conchocelis Phase Of Alaskan Porphyra (Bangiales, Rhodophyta) Species To Environmental Factors, Rulong Lin, Michael Stekoll
Responses Of Chlorophyll A Content For Conchocelis Phase Of Alaskan Porphyra (Bangiales, Rhodophyta) Species To Environmental Factors, Rulong Lin, Michael Stekoll
Faculty, Staff, and Students
Investigations were performed on variations of photosynthetic pigment in conchocelis of Alaskan Porphyra species, P. abbottae (Pa), P. pseudolanceolata (Pe), P. pseudolinearis (Pi) and P. torta (Pt), in response to environmental variables. Conchocelis were cultured under varying conditions of irradiance (0, 10, 40 and 160 µmol photons m-2s-1), nutrient concentration (0, f/4, f/2 and f) for up to 60 days (with temperature 11°C and salinity 30ppt). Chlorophyll a (Chl a ) content was measured by spectrophotometry. Results indicated that Chl content varied with different culture conditions and species. Photosynthetic pigment was significantly affected by irradiance, nutrient concentration and culture duration, …
Predicting Distributions Of Estuarine Associated Fish And Invertebrates In Southeast Alaska, Katharine Bollinger Miller
Predicting Distributions Of Estuarine Associated Fish And Invertebrates In Southeast Alaska, Katharine Bollinger Miller
Marine Biology
Estuaries in Southeast Alaska provide habitat for juveniles and adults of several commercial fish and invertebrate species; however, because of the area's size and challenging environment, very little is known about the spatial structure and distribution of estuarine species in relation to the biotic and abiotic environment. This study uses advanced machine learning algorithms (random forest and multivariate random forest) and landscape and seascape-scale environmental variables to develop predictive models of species occurrence and community composition within Southeast Alaskanestuaries. Species data were obtained from trawl and seine sampling in 49 estuaries throughout the study area. Environmental data were compiled and …
Growth And Energetic Condition Of Dolly Varden Char In Coastal Arctic Waters, Jason T. Stolarski
Growth And Energetic Condition Of Dolly Varden Char In Coastal Arctic Waters, Jason T. Stolarski
Fisheries
Dolly Varden char Salvelinus malma are a dominant member of the nearshore Arctic icthyofauna and support one of the largest subsistence fisheries within Arctic coastal communities in Alaska. Despite this importance, numerous aspects of Dolly Varden ecology remain poorly understood, which inhibits efforts to assess the biological consequences of anthropogenic disturbances such as hydrocarbon extraction and climate change within nearshore areas. The goal of this research was to develop and apply new techniques to measure and assess the biological integrity of Dolly Varden populations. To do so, I evaluated the precision of age determination generated from scales, otoliths, and fin …
Regional Variation In Mandibular Morphology In The Prehistoric Japanese Populations Of The JōMon And Okhotsk, Rogelio A. Arenas
Regional Variation In Mandibular Morphology In The Prehistoric Japanese Populations Of The JōMon And Okhotsk, Rogelio A. Arenas
Anthropology
Examination of 11 metric mandibular traits was conducted on data collected from several Jōmon and Okhotsk sites for the purpose of analyzing potential impacts of dietary differences on mandibular morphology for these groups. Based on the dietary history of the populations and their respective regions, Middle Jōmon (5,000 - 3,000 BP) sites would share comparable robusticities across all regions based on social and economic continuity as a stable climate resulted in abundant dietary resources which fostered a growth in population in the Japanese islands of Honshu and Hokkaido. As the climate cooled in the Late/Final Jōmon (4,000 - 2,000 BP), …
Insight Into The Diet History Of Ice Seals Using Isotopic Signatures Of Muscle Tissue And Claws, Sara Shanae Carroll
Insight Into The Diet History Of Ice Seals Using Isotopic Signatures Of Muscle Tissue And Claws, Sara Shanae Carroll
Marine Biology
Climate change and sea ice reduction in the Arctic may impact foraging of ice-associated predators. The goal of my thesis work was to examine interannual differences in the diet of ringed, bearded, spotted, and ribbon seals as described by stable nitrogen and carbon isotope ratios of muscle tissue and claws to assess foraging plasticity. Isotopic mixing models from muscle data were used to describe the proportional contribution of prey groups during 2003, 2008-2010. Results showed a higher proportional contribution of smelt (Osmeridae) and benthic prey to ringed and bearded seal diets in 2003 compared to 2008-2010. Seasonal keratin layers deposited …
A Total Environment Of Change: Exploring Social-Ecological Shifts In Subsistence Fisheries In Noatak And Selawik, Alaska, Katie J. Moerlein
A Total Environment Of Change: Exploring Social-Ecological Shifts In Subsistence Fisheries In Noatak And Selawik, Alaska, Katie J. Moerlein
Fisheries
Arctic ecosystems are undergoing rapid changes as a result of global climate change, with significant implications for the livelihoods of arctic peoples. In this thesis, I use ethnographic research methods to detail prominent environmental changes observed and experienced over the past few decades and to document the impact of these changes on subsistence fishing practices in the Inupiaq communities of Noatak and Selawik in northwestern Alaska. Using in-depth key informant interviews, participant observation, and cultural consensus analysis, I explore local knowledge and perceptions of climate change and other pronounced changes facing the communities of Noatak and Selawik. I find consistent …
Epizootic Of Beak Deformities In Alaska: Investigation Of An Emerging Avian Disease, Caroline Van Hemert
Epizootic Of Beak Deformities In Alaska: Investigation Of An Emerging Avian Disease, Caroline Van Hemert
Biological Sciences
The sudden appearance of morphological abnormalities in a wild population is often associated with underlying ecological disturbances, including those related to introduction of new pathogens or pollutants. An epizootic of beak deformities recently documented among Black-capped Chickadees (Poecile atricapillus) and other resident bird species in Alaska has raised concern about underlying causes. This dissertation describes results from several recent studies of what we have termed "avian keratin disorder." The primary objectives of the research were to characterize the physiology and pathology of beak deformities and to address specific ecological questions related to this emerging avian disease. In a study of …
Population Genetics And Mixed Stock Analysis Of Chum Salmon (Oncorhynchus Keta) With Molecular Genetics, Michael R. Garvin
Population Genetics And Mixed Stock Analysis Of Chum Salmon (Oncorhynchus Keta) With Molecular Genetics, Michael R. Garvin
Fisheries
Chum salmon (Oncorhynchus keta) are important for subsistence and commercial harvest in Alaska. Variability of returns to western Alaskan drainages that caused economic hardship for stakeholders has led to speculation about reasons, which may include both anthropogenic and environmental causes in the marine environment. Mixed stock analysis (MSA) compares genetic information from an individual caught at sea to a reference baseline of genotypes to assign it to its population of origin. Application of genetic baselines requires several complex steps that can introduce bias. The bias may reduce the accuracy of MSA and result in overly-optimistic evaluations of baselines. Moreover, some …
Hydrographic Controls And Seasonal Variability On The Carbonate System In The Northern Gulf Of Alaska, Kristen L. Shake
Hydrographic Controls And Seasonal Variability On The Carbonate System In The Northern Gulf Of Alaska, Kristen L. Shake
Marine Biology
The Northern Gulf of Alaska (GOA) supports a dynamic and economically viable marine ecosystem. One notable potential stressor to this ecosystem is ocean acidification (OA), a byproduct of the increased uptake of anthropogenic carbon dioxide (CO₂) by the ocean. Measurements of dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) and total alkalinity (TA) were made along the continental shelf of the northern GOA and in Prince William Sound (PWS) and used to calculate seawater pH and the saturation state of aragonite Warp). Observations showed a high degree of seasonal variability in DIC concentrations in surface and bottom waters. TA was depleted relative to DIC …